The international community's High Representative to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Valentin Inzko, on Tuesday warned that even 13 months after elections political parties in the country had not formed a government and condemned the Bosnian Serb authorities for denying the Srebrenica genocide, glorifying war criminals and inciting separatism.

In a regular semi-annual report to the UN Security Council on peace implementation in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), the Austrian diplomat said that government was under blockade because a new Council of Ministers had not been appointed and the state parliament had not begun work.

“This means that no new legislation can be adopted, including the state-level budget, which severely limits the country’s ability to effectively deal with emerging issues, such as the migrant crisis,” the High Representative said.

He warned of continued destabilising rhetoric used by political leaders of all three constituent peoples.

“Some political leaders from the RS (Republika Srpska) have continued to make statements expressing separatist tendencies or predicting the dissolution of BiH, while some Croat representatives seek a territorial rearrangement of the country. At the same time, the biggest Bosniak party has again adopted a party platform advocating the Republic of BiH, which was not helpful,” Inzko said.

He stressed that the glorification of convicted war criminals made the possibility of a true and lasting reconciliation amongst all peoples much harder to attain. He particularly condemned “revisionism or outright denial of the Srebrenica genocide, a legal fact as confirmed in judgments of both international and domestic judicial bodies”.

“Genocide was perpetrated in Srebrenica in 1995! Nothing and no one can change this fact,” Inzko underscored.

The High Representative also mentioned the the BiH Constitutional Court ruling on Mostar and the European Court of Human Rights ruling in the Sejdic-Finci case on the rights of minorities, which remain unimplemented ten years on.

Inzko called on politicians in Bosnia and Herzegovina to overcome their differences and move the country forward on its European path. He also called on the international community to continue its involvement and deliver on the promise of a better future for the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina.