U.S. sanctions Bosnian Serb officials accused of undermining Dayton Accords
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Aug. 1 (UPI) -- The United States sanctioned four high-level Bosnian Serb officials, as the Biden administration continues to punish those it accuses of undermining the peace agreement that ended the bloody Bosnian War.
The departments of State and Treasury announced the sanctions Monday against the four officials they say encouraged the Republika Srpska to pass controversial legislation that directs the state to ignore rulings by the Bosnia Herzegovina Constitutional Court.
The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republika Srpska are two entities that compose the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina and were formed in 1995 with the signing of the U.S.-sponsored Dayton Accords, which ended the bloody three-and-a-half year Bosnian War that resulted in the deaths of some 100,000 people.
The Biden administration has been taking aim at those it accuses of attempting to undermine this agreement and has repeatedly imposed sanctions on officials it says is threatening the hard-won peace through pursuing secessionist actions.
On Monday, the U.S. departments blacklisted those supporting the bill sponsored by U.S.-designated Republika President Milorad Dodik which he signed into law on July 7.
"This new legislation is a brazen attempt to undermine state institutions," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.
"The law threatens the stability, sovereignty and territorial integrity of BiH as well as the country's prospects for integration into Euro-Atlantic and European institutions, at the expense of the people of BiH."
Those blacklisted were identified as Nenad Stevandic, speaker and president of the Republika Srpska National Assembly; Radovan Viskovic, Republika Srpska prime minister; Zeljka Cvijanovic, a serb member of the Bosnia and Herzegovina presidency; and Milos Bukejlovic, Republika Srpska's justice minister.
"We will continue to support the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina in their efforts to maintain the rule of law and make sure peace and prosperity prevail," Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson said in a statement.
