Inzko summons BiH’s main parties for talks

SARAJEVO, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH)

High Representative Valentin Inzko will meet with leaders of the three main political parties on Thursday (July 16th) to discuss ways to get reforms moving again. All three parties signed the so-called Prud Agreement in November 2008, in which they pledged to address key political issues.

Invited to the meeting Thursday are the Bosniak Party of Democratic Action, the Serb Union of Independent Social Democrats and the Croatian Democratic Union of BiH, as well as leaders of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the Party for Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The meeting will focus on remaining reforms required as part of the visa liberalisation roadmap and the need for parliament to quickly approve related legislation.

They will also discuss meeting the five conditions set by the Peace Implementation Council to close Inzko’s Office of the High Representative. All leaders except SDP Chairman Zlatko Lagumdzija are expected to attend. In a letter to Inzko, Lagumdzija said he considers both the Prud process and BiH’s ruling coalition politically dead.

In other news, Bosniak Party of Democratic Action’s (SDA) leaders plan to demand that one of their own, Security Minister Tarik Sadovic, be replaced, party president Sulejman Tihic announced on Wednesday. Sadovic, who insists he will not resign, accuses Tihic of succumbing to pressure from Deputy High Representative Raffi Gregorian and US Ambassador to BiH Charles English. The SDA says some in the international community have complained about Sadovic’s level of communication and co-operation.

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