Thank you for giving me the chance to speak here today: it is an honour to join you. This conference is asking if multipolarity is possible. I think we are already living in a multipolar world. A multipolar world of profound geopolitical change in which the relative certainties of the post Cold War era have given way to an increasingly volatile, fragmented, and dangerous world. The assumptions that underpinned international relations for decades are being challenged — not only by the resurgence of authoritarian powers, but also by the erosion of trust in the very institutions designed to uphold peace and cooperation. No one here needs to be reminded of just how critical it is that we have those institutions help us manage our differences and tackle global challenges.

Yet we face more conflict around the world than at any time since the Cold War, including here in Europe, and we have yet to get a grip of crises like Climate and Nature that demand a global response. Meanwhile the rules-based system is being challenged; and shared values tested. In this multipolar world how do we build security and prosperity and hold on to our values? Those two things reinforce one another. The rules based international order is the fundamental framework of peace and prosperity for us all – protecting it is only becoming more important.

The UK Foreign Secretary – who visited Bosnia and Herzegovina recently – has spoken of a grim alternative of unending competition characterised by economic suffering, conflict and climate crises. That – clearly – is not an alternative we can accept. Instead, we must have a long-term approach centred around partnership with those who are committed to the same fundamental principles that we find in the UN Charter – these principles are not ‘western’ values as Putin and others would have you believe. They are fundamental human values.

The UK has a long-standing commitment to those partnerships here in the Western Balkans, a region which has paid the price of multipolar competition in the past. We are deeply engaged in the region – as a NATO ally, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, and a long-standing partner in reform processes. We strongly support the region’s Euro-Atlantic integration: anchoring security and prosperity in the heart of Europe. Later this year the UK will also be hosting the Berlin Process summit, working with the region’s leaders to promote regional cooperation and deliver security and growth.

But today, we are deeply concerned by the crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The President of Republika Srpska is working to:

• Undermine the Dayton Peace Agreement and to weaken state institutions.
• Promote instability instead of pluralist politics.
• Pass unconstitutional laws and develop an anti-Dayton constitution, directly threatening the sovereignty and territorial integrity of this country.

These measures need to be seen for what they are: a direct challenge to the peace and security of Bosnia and Herzegovina and of Europe. To restate our position. As we mark thirty years since the Dayton Peace Agreement, the UK unequivocally supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Of one state, two entities, three constituent peoples and Others. This has not changed. There is no threat to the Republika Srpska entity, nor the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity. The EU accession path does not change that.

With Bosnia and Herzegovina under threat, the UK supports the High Representative as the ultimate interpreter of the civilian aspects of the Dayton Agreement. The UK supports EUFOR’s crucial role to uphold the military aspects of Dayton to provide a safe and secure environment for the people of this country. And it supports the functioning of all key institutions, including those who have the essential task of upholding rule of law. As the Foreign Secretary said during his visit, there is an opportunity to break the stalemate that has lasted for the past few years and progress Bosnia and Herzegovina on its Euro-Atlantic path and to economic development.

There are brave and courageous politicians in this country who recognize that the future of this country lies with Europe, not in secession and isolation. The UK will work with those politicians who want to deliver for their citizens, not for themselves. And we will work to ensure there will be consequences for all those who choose to support actions that undermine the constitutional order.

To close, we will be debating here how to navigate this multipolar world. And what choices we must make to reflect our domestic priorities in our foreign policy. This grim alternative that the UK Foreign Secretary talked about earlier this year is the vision of President Putin, Mr Dodik’s closest ally. This is the Putin who launched a full-scale invasion of his democratic neighbour Ukraine in 2022. Whose Ambassador to BiH threatened to bring the horrors of Ukraine to BiH if it followed its democratically chosen future. And whose collaboration with Mr Dodik has threatened to break up the country and left the people of Republika Srpska with an inheritance of debt and a crumbling energy industry.

The United Kingdom will continue to stand with all partners here and in the Western Balkans in pursuit of stability, security, and prosperity, and in defence of the international order that keeps us all secure.

Thank you.