Extremist gesture in Bosnia. Minister Stasa Kosarac sent a Nazi helmet to German diplomat Christian Schmidt: “A legacy of your Nazi ancestors”
A Bosnian minister sent a helmet with Nazi insignia to German diplomat Christian Schmidt, the High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina, sparking a diplomatic scandal and heightening ethnic tensions in the country.
Stasa Kosarac's message was more than obvious. PHOTO: Facebook/Instagram collage
Relations with Germany could deteriorate after the extreme (and extremist) gesture of Bosnian Foreign Trade Minister Stasa Kosarac, who sent a Nazi helmet and a harsh message to German diplomat Christian Schmidt, who oversees compliance with the Dayton peace agreement: “It is time to leave this country, where you should never have come.”
In a post shared a few hours ago on his Instagram account, Minister Stasa Kosarac not only does not regret the initiative, but insists on the message he wanted to convey through this gesture, further categorizing Christian Schmidt as a “Nazi”.
“Today I sent Occupier Schmidt the symbol of the Nazi army, accompanied by a “Letter to the Occupier”, in which I emphasized that it is not a gift, but the legacy of Schmidt's ancestors, whose values this Occupier inherited.
Him, who came to this country illegally, without a work permit, with the intention of occupying, enslaving, subjugating.
Him, who through the authorities of unconstitutional and undemocratic manipulations usurped internal institutions, destroyed democracy and led the judicial-political persecution of the legally and legitimately elected president of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, in an effort to weaken Republika Srpska and nullify the free will of the Serb people in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
To him, who is the embodiment of political evil and bad intentions towards my homeland, Republika Srpska, and my proud Serbian people, I wrote, among other things, that if in Bavaria, Westphalia, Porajne or any other province he finds even a piece of a Serbian soldier's uniform, and he will not find it, because it does not exist, he should be free to bring it back to us.
I reminded him that this helmet is the legacy of his Nazi ancestors who killed my people during the darkest period of human civilization. Perhaps this helmet will complete the family's collection or even his own, as he is known to follow the tradition of the Nazi army and Hitler's pilots.” wrote Stasa Kosarac.
Who is the German diplomat in question?
Christian Schmidt holds the position of International High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina from 2021 and has expanded powers to implement the 1995 Dayton Agreement, which ended the inter-ethnic war of the 1990s.
However, its legitimacy has been repeatedly challenged by parliamentarians and officials in the Serb-dominated Republika Srpska, which challenges the central authority of the government and the High Representative.
Bosnia and Herzegovina remains an ethnically divided country, consisting of two entities: the Federation, where Muslim Bosniaks share power with Croats, and the Serb-majority Republika Srpska. Above them is a central government with limited powers and a tripartite president, composed of one representative from each ethnic group, who manage inter-ethnic relations in a politically fragile state.
The conflict between Christian Schmidt and Milorad Dodik, the former president of Republika Srpska, referred to by Stasa Kosarac in his message, has pushed Bosnia into a political crisis, and persistent ethnic and political tensions are amplified by the public statements and gestures of nationalist officials.
NATO, which intervened in the war in the 1990s and helped end the conflict that resulted in nearly 100,000 casualties, continues to ensure Bosnia's security through its peacekeeping forces and cooperation with European Union structures based in Sarajevo.
