Bosnia’s international peace oversight body failed on Thursday to reach agreement on a successor to Germany’s Christian Schmidt, who unexpectedly stepped down last month, claiming he had come under pressure from the United States.
Talks on the appointment will continue, according to Schmidt, who resigned in May from the Office of the High Representative (OHR), the institution responsible for overseeing implementation of the U.S.-brokered Dayton Peace Agreement that brought an end to the Bosnian conflict in 1995.
“These consultations will continue,” Schmidt said in a video message in his capacity as chair of the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC), the body responsible for nominating the High Representative. “All participants are looking forward to agreeing on a consensus candidate in the coming days, with the aim of completing the transition by the end of June.”
The PIC Steering Board comprises representatives from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union. Russia has suspended its participation in the group.
The U.S. State Department, which has recently stated that the “U.S.-led nation-building era has passed” and has argued for a more limited mandate for the position, has backed veteran Italian diplomat Antonio Zanardi Landi for the role.
Speaking before Congress on Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed Washington’s support for Landi, describing him as “an Italian gentleman” capable of providing stability to the office.
However, despite reports that Landi travelled to Sarajevo on Thursday to attend the meeting, member states failed to reach a consensus on his appointment.
Many diplomats and political analysts maintain that the Office of the High Representative should remain in place while Bosnian Serb and Croat separatist forces continue to obstruct the functioning of state institutions, posing a threat to the country’s territorial integrity, stability and economic development.
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Russia is willing in principle to resume peace talks with Ukraine and the United States in November, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said after President Vladimir Putin met U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg.
Saudi Aramco has ordered staff to evacuate its headquarters amid escalating Houthi attacks on the kingdom. Two people were killed in an attack on Dammam airport, while Iran's IRGC Navy claimed strikes on seven vessels and warned the U.S. of a wider response.
Russian strikes on Ukraine overnight killed at least two people and injured 15 others, including two children, Ukrainian authorities said. Meanwhile, Russia said it had intercepted the vast majority of 630 Ukrainian drones launched towards Moscow.
Yemen's Houthis have denied targeting the holy city of Medina on Wednesday adding that they have not conducted any military operations towards Saudi Arabia either, denying earlier comments from the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.
Georgia’s Constitutional Court in Batumi will on Wednesday hear a lawsuit seeking to ban five Georgian opposition parties, four of which collectively gained 784,820 votes (37.79 per cent) in the country’s last national elections in 2024.
Russian strikes on Ukraine overnight killed at least two people and injured 15 others, including two children, Ukrainian authorities said. Meanwhile, Russia said it had intercepted the vast majority of 630 Ukrainian drones launched towards Moscow.
Nigeria's first Ebola case in more than a decade may be linked to travel in Uganda, Swiss authorities said on Thursday, although the source of infection remains unclear. Uganda maintains it has no cases of the disease.
Super typhoon Champi is set to batter Japan’s Okinawa Prefecture from Friday (23 October), bringing violent winds, torrential rain and waves up to 11 metres high, as airlines cancel flights and organisers scrap a major festival.
Two women from Austria and Switzerland have been freed after lengthy periods in captivity in Niger, following extensive diplomatic efforts to secure their release amid growing concerns over kidnappings in the Sahel region.
France has reported its first known human case of Shamonda virus following the death of an infected patient, authorities said on Thursday (22 October). The virus, typically found in livestock, is believed to have been transmitted by a biting midge.
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