CSU politician Christian Schmidt has denied claims that his sudden withdrawal from the office of High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina was due to American pressure. According to Schmidt in an interview with the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung”, he stated, “I voluntarily decided to step down”. When questioned about whether he seemed like someone who had much more to say-and perhaps wanted to say-than he was allowed, Schmidt responded that those who say everything on their heart’s desire “do not observe the basic rules of diplomatic conduct”. He firmly rejected the notion that he was a victim of American politics, declaring, “I am not a victim. I am a free man”. However, he simultaneously issued a warning to his opponents, cautioning that those who assume problems can be solved simply by someone departing or another arriving have misunderstood the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Addressing how Europe should react to the alliance formulated by the “Maga government”-which connects figures favorable to Russia with those opposed to the EU-Schmidt advocated for a more proactive European approach. He suggested that rather than reacting, Europe must take action. As an example, he highlighted a planned gas pipeline into Bosnia, designed to replace the country’s unilateral reliance on Russian gas. This pipeline, built by a US company with ties to former President Donald Trump, was recently deemed unsupported by the EU because it did not use renewable energy. Schmidt asked, “So Bosnia continues to depend only on Russian gas. It cannot be acceptable to merely criticize others in hindsight. What about our European strategy?”
The German politician also conceded that in his potent, yet purely titular, role, he would have no power to prevent a split in the region should Milorad Dodik, the Bosnian Serb secessionist leader, attempt to separate a territory under his control from the rest of the country, potentially leading to violence. Schmidt told “FA” that if the country were to fracture, “the High Representative’s authority would indeed be insufficient. In such a case, maintaining peace and the committed intervention of the international community, according to rules governing secession, would be paramount”.
Furthermore, Schmidt warned about the rising Islamophobia in Bosnia, which he claimed was being fueled by Dodik. He noted, “Harsh hate speech is being delivered. All abusive insults available in the Bosnian language about Bosniak Muslims are being shouted out, until the term ‘Turk’ is used as an unacceptable slur”. He voiced significant concern over this decline, stating that there was “no more fear of insult”.