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| Europe |
| Serb recruits refuse allegiance to Bosnia |
| 2005-04-19 |
| ISN SECURITY WATCH (19/04/05) - The first generation of Bosnian-Serb army recruits asked to swear loyalty to Bosnia refused to do so and booed the national anthem during a weekend swearing-in ceremony. Over 500 Bosnian Serb army recruits were asked to swear an oath of allegiance to Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, when an officer read the oath intended to be repeated by the recruits, they instead swore loyalty only to the country's Serb-dominated entity of Republika Srpska (RS). The Bosnian Serbs' refusal to swear allegiance to Bosnia deals a harsh blow to the country, which in 2003 took historical steps to unify the country's armed forces. The country was divided into two separate entities after the 1992-1995 war. Until now, the country's two separate armies swore allegiance only to their respective entities: the RS and the Bosniak- and Bosnian Croat-dominated Federation entity. The text of the pledge states: "[
]I will protect the territorial integrity and independence of B&H...". The recruits changed the text, replacing Bosnia with Republika Srpska, to the applause of their relatives and friends gathered at their barracks for the swearing in ceremony. Bosnian Defense Minister Nikola Radovanovic, who is also a Serb, ordered an investigation into whether the incident had been organized by higher-ranking authorities. He said if that were proven to be the case, he would ask the defense minister of RS and other high-ranking military officers to resign. Radovanovic said he would press for a repeat of the ceremony. Bosnian Serb politicians defended the soldiers' refusal to pledge allegiance to Bosnia, saying there had been too much pressure to form a joint army in Bosnia and that the soldiers had only expressed their personal opinions. Branko Trkulja, spokesman for the RS Defense Ministry, told media that the incident sent "a clear message to the international community that a unified army is not possible". The international community condemned the soldiers' actions. The NATO commander in Bosnia, US General Steven Schook, called it "an illegal act", adding that the Bosnian Serb military was still influenced by opponents of reconciliation. He gave RS authorities until Wednesday to hand over the names of those responsible. The EU, the US embassy, NATO, and the international community's high representative to Bosnia, Paddy Ashdown, issued a statement saying that the incident should "be taken very seriously" because it indicated a "deeper problem". The creation of a joint command over the country's armed forces is one of the conditions for Bosnia to begin EU and NATO membership talks. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #1 The Bosnian Serbs’ refusal to swear allegiance to Bosnia deals a harsh blow to the country, which in 2003 took historical steps to unify the country’s armed forces. There's a reason why "Balkans" is spoken of the way it is in the West... |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2005-04-19 10:09:54 AM |