BOSNIA- SILAJDZIC DISCUSSES KOSOVO, CONSTITUTIONAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L SARAJEVO 000107 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR EUR (DICARLO),EUR/SCE (HOH, SILBERSTEIN, FOOKS, STINCHCOMB),EUR/RPM DEFENSE FOR FATA, BEIN NSC FOR BRAUN E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/17/2017 TAGS: PREL PGOV BK SUBJECT: BOSNIA- SILAJDZIC DISCUSSES KOSOVO, CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM, CRC ISSUES REF: SARAJEVO 1610 Classified By: CDA Judith Cefkin for reaons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary. CDA met with Bosniak member of the Presidency Haris Silajdzic January 16 to advocate support for Bosnia's Iraq deployment. They also had a wide-ranging discussion on the political situation in Bosnia and the region. Silajdzic told CDA that he believed "everything was on hold" until the Kosovo situation was resolved, and urged the United States to seek a final status decision in the short-term. Silajzdic repeated his usual points on the reform agenda, stressing that a piecemeal approach that did not address fundamental status issues would be unacceptable. He stated that United States should play a role in the constitutional reform process. Silajdzic again raised his concerns over "forced deportation" of foreign fighters stripped of Bosnian citizenship by the Citizenship Review Commission (CRC). End Summary. ¶2. (C) President Silajdzic told CDA that, "measuring by Bosnian standards," the effect of Kosovo independence would be manageable in Bosnia. He said he was being careful not to rock the boat in the lead-up to final status. however, he stressed, the political situation in the country was frozen pending Kosovo independence, and urged the United States to push for speedy resolution of final status. Silajdzic did caution that "evil forces of a dying ideology" in the Republika Srpska (RS) could seek to provoke a crisis, and noted the need to closely monitor the security of Bosniak returnees in eastern RS. More broadly, Silajdzic expressed his belief that President Tadic would secure reelection in Serbia. Silajdzic said that while Tadic was "not an ideal neighbor," he had been constructive on some issues but needed to be pushed to fulfill all of "Serbia's obligations" under the February 2007 ICJ verdict. ¶3. (C) Silajdzic dismissed the efforts of Croat parties to convene a meeting of political leaders in Siroki Brijeg the following week. Silajdzic said the Croats sought further divisions of Bosnia that he opposed on principle and were coordinating their efforts with RS Prime Minister Dodik. Silajdzic reprised familiar lines that he supported a "unitary" state of Bosnia free of any divisions created by "acts of genocide." Silajdzic disagreed with CDA's suggestion that party leaders should seek small areas of agreement that could lead to proposals for comprehensive reform. Silajdzic said that there existed no opportunity for piecemeal reform as all questions directly related to "the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina." Silajdzic stressed the need for the United States to play the leading role in pushing the reform agenda. Silajdzic said that further US disengagement could only lead to the partition of the country and creation of a "Bosniak ghetto." ¶4. (C) Noting that he addressed the matter with the former Ambassador in July 2007 (reftel),Silajdzic again sought USG support for finding a solution short of deportation of certain individuals stripped of their citizenship by the CRC. Silajdzic said that he had had further meetings with "two individuals" who needed guarantees that would not face persecution if they returned to their native Syria. (Note. Silajdzic is most probably referring to Abu Hamza and Aiman Awa. End Note.) Silajdzic stated that he unequivocally believed that "these people must leave," and claimed they wanted to leave, but wanted to avoid damaging press coverage domestically and in Europe if "the people with the beards" publicly protested their deportations. Silajdzic said his "private diplomacy" to find third country resettlement for the individuals had failed, as "there was lack of demand" for the former foreign fighters. CDA stressed that the individuals in question had undergone a transparent and legal process to determine if their Bosnian citizenship was fraudulently obtained, and retained the option to leave the country voluntary before they were deported. CEFKIN