Speeches

It is just four months since I last spoke to the Council. You have before you our detailed report on developments in the last half of 2004, so I do not intend this morning to cover all the ground in that report in detail. Let me just pick out the highlights.

I would like to congratulate the NGO, “Children – the Pillars of the World”, on launching this event. It is especially interesting that the opening comes just as another great and significant cultural event for Sarajevo – International Festival Sarajevo Winter – is closing. Events such as these show that Sarajevo is one of the most active and liv [...]

We have gathered here today to see presentations of different strategies for the preservation and protection of the national and cultural heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina. I am sure that many people will ask: Why give priority to monuments, when there are so many other issues that seem to be calling for immediate attention? There are still so ma [...]

At this moment Bosnia and Herzegovina becomes the first country in the region to meet international standards to try war crimes. Today, as we formally inaugurate the War Crimes Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, I want to stress the paramount importance of the Chamber’s role to claim to full sovereign statement of BiH.

The Rule of Law is any state’s No. 1 priority. Establishing the rule of law will determine the success or failure of everything we do in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Every political, economic and social reform, every initiative aimed at putting this country firmly on the road to Europe will stand or fall on the strength of our success or failure in th [...]

I began my work as Principal Deputy High Representative on 16 July 2001, more than three and a half years ago. I will be leaving BiH two weeks form now, on 16 March. My own direct involvement in a broad range of political and economic initiatives will come to an end – but all of these initiatives are going to move forward, and that’s what I want [...]

Last year, at this conference, we spoke about Mediation as a completely new concept in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Today there is a recognition of both the process and its value. BiH today is experiencing a gradual but nonetheless significant change in the whole environment of commercial litigation – and Mediation is very much a part of that. The Cr [...]

One of my favourite quotes about technology comes from Alexander Graham Bell. The telephone inventor and (otherwise quite savvy) tycoon is reputed to have said that, “One day there will be a need for a telephone in every town.” Clearly, Graham Bell underestimated – by a factor of several billion – the market possibilities of his own invention. B [...]

The role of Peace Support Operations in military doctrine has evolved dramatically in the last 15 years. This reflects the fundamental changes that have taken place in the nature of global military deployment since the Cold War. The number of Peace Support Operations has increased – in tandem with the number of humanitarian interventions – and th [...]

Let me start by dispelling a myth. If you look beyond Bosnia and Herzegovina’s recent past and examine the historical record as a whole, you will see that what distinguishes this country is tolerance and peace among its peoples, not conflict. Tolerance and peace have been the norm; conflict has been the aberration. The truth is that Bosnia and Her [...]