After the death of its founder, Alija Izetbegovic, the SDA succeeded in retaining the position of the strongest political party in the country and will continue to play a leading role in efforts aimed at strengthening peace and implementing reforms necessary for Bosnia's admission to the European Union and NATO, Tihic said in Sarajevo.
Tihic, who expects of the convention to confirm his next term as the party's chief, said that in the country the SDA should continue cooperating with all parties that worked in accordance with the principles of sovereign, independent and indivisible Bosnia-Herzegovina.
"The preference in this cooperation will be given to pro-Bosnian parties," he added.
Tihic said that the SDA should act as a popular party of the centre, being opened to all peoples and that it should "distance itself from nationalistic parties".
The SDA leader said he was a proponent of preserving the presence of the international community in the country through institutionalised models, primarily through the Office of the High Representative. He also advocated the re-definition of constitutional solutions incorporated in the 1995 Dayton peace accords with the purpose of establishing a more efficient and less expensive administration in the country.
Tihic refused any possibilities of swapping parts of land between Bosnian and Serbia within any plan for reaching the permanent solution for the status of Kosovo.