Moscow to Firmly Counter Attempts to Review Dayton Accords for Peace in BiH, Lavrov Says

BELGRADE (Sputnik) - Moscow will stand up against attempts to review the Dayton Accords — a peace agreement that put an end to the war that broke out after Bosnia and Herzegovina decided to separate from Yugoslavia — in every possible way, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday after talks with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

"We have exchanged opinions on the situation in the Balkans, including in the context of the upcoming 25th anniversary of the Dayton Accords and a range of other events. We and our Serbian friends share the same stand, in this situation we will do everything possible to curb the attempts to review these decisions. This could be in line with some of our regional colleagues' attempts aimed at rewriting history. We will shut out attempts to rewrite the history of World War II and events that unfolded in the Balkans 25 years ago", Lavrov said.

In February, Chairman of the House of Peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina Dragan Covic has expressed hope that Bosnia and Herzegovina will develop fruitful cooperation with Russia in spite of divisions between the Bosnian society and authorities.

The parliamentary speaker added that the country was currently operating within the framework of the 1995 Dayton Agreement, a peace agreement that put an end to the longstanding conflict in the country, which broke out after Bosnia and Herzegovina announced its separation from Yugoslavia in 1992. Under the agreement, two autonomous entities within the country, Republika Srpska and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina were created. Despite the agreement, internal political divisions still exist.