HIGH REPRESENTATIVE FO BH REQUESTS EXTENTION OF SFOR MANDATE

SARAJEVO, Oct 3 (Hina) - High Representative for Bosnia- Herzegovina Wolfgang Petritsch on Tuesday requested that the mandate of the Stabilisation Force (SFOR) in the country be extended stressing that the peace process, even five years after the Dayton agreement, was still exposed to serious temptations. A statement issued by the Office of the High Representatives (OHR) forwarded a statement to media in Sarajevo Tuesday read that Ambassador Petritsch on Tuesday held talks with participants of a NATO meeting being held in Brussels and NATO secretary general George Robertson via video connection. Explaining he was aware of the fact that almost all NATO member- countries were facing a pressure for the decrease of military expenses, Petritsch stressed that the presence of the SFOR in Bosnia-Herzegovina was still of a crucial significance. The current number of 22,000 SFOR soldiers represents the minimum necessary for the maintaining peace in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Petritsch said. The number of peace forces in Bosnia-Herzegovina is decreased by two thirds in relation to 1995, when 60,000 soldiers were deployed to Bosnia-Herzegovina with a task to support the implementation of the Dayton Agreement. Petritsch pointed to an encouraging progress in the past period, namely in the return of refugees, however, he added that at the same time there were numerous open serious issues which still represented a threat to the fragile stability of the country. The electoral crisis in Yugoslavia and the upcoming elections in Bosnia-Herzegovina scheduled for November 11 even more accentuate the crucial role of the SFOR, the High Representative said. He stressed the SFOR is expected to contribute to the reorganisation of military forces in Bosnia-Herzegovina and particularly the arrest of war crime suspects. (hina) it