Important documents that support the alarm bells some colleagues and I were raising a few days ago, but earlier also, about the growing linkages b/t the Serb ultra-nationalist camp in Bosnia & their fellow travelers in Serbia. A recent thread:
Above txt by @dfriedman33 provides crucial data to flesh out this emerging axis which, as I told @cjcmichel for @thinkprogress, is not only a shocking assault on BiH's peace & security but also a direct betrayal of the US' authorship of the Dayton Accords. thinkprogress.org/these-trump-ca…
And the Russian dimension of this story, as @julianborger reported in January, is not incidental. Dodik has since 2014 emerged as the leading Russian proxy in the Balkans, increasingly pushing the envelope in an already volatile region. theguardian.com/world/2018/jan…
I ask again, given context of what's happening re: Serbia & Kosovo, what is the US policy twds the Balkan?s Esp BiH, its strategic center? Does the GOP-led Congress still back Dayton? Does the WH? Do they realize the implications if the answer is anything but a resounding "yes"?
If I sound like a broken record it's bc I feel like I'm watching the most vulnerable part of Europe, a country I was forced to flee bc of war, increasingly teeter twds the brink. The US is BiH's most important partner. Washington's neglect has been hard but this is malicious.
BiH could muddle through w fly-over interest from the Obama WH. But if this WH is actively throwing region's central polity to the Russian wolves, we are in incredibly deep, dark waters. The US urgently needs to clarify its position on the region & rein in these mercenaries.
And, as a final point, please recall the head of govt for which all these GOP folks are lobbying is still officially sanctioned by the US Treasury Dept. They may claim to work for the SNSD party or the PM but it's Dodik who runs the whole ship. /xxx reuters.com/article/us-usa…
