SLAVENKA DRAKULIC
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among themselves on the solution. I think that's probably one aspect, but
in fact in the majority of the meetings among the foreign ministers of the
EC, there was a prevailing consensus that, first, they don't have a proper
political solution, other than that they have different ones which would
clash; and secondly, and primarily I think, they don't want to risk losing
the lives of their own soldiers, because that would go down badly with
public opinion, again since they don't have a national interest in Bosnia–
Herzegovina . They have an interest as Europeans to keep Europe stable
and secure, which is in fact also in the United States' interest. The United
States has, obviously, humanistic moral motivation, but that is not its only
motivation.
It
is in the interest of the United States to have a stable and
secure Europe, and it has a responsibilty as the world's remaining
superpower to help. The objection of the Europeans was that Americans
offered to lift the embargo, to help the Muslims defend themselves and to
bomb certain strategic targets, but they were not prepared to commit
American troops, risk American lives, until a peaceful solution could be
agreed upon. And once again, the Europeans felt that this would
endanger the lives of their own soldiers. I agree with you that bombing
alone would not solve the problem but exacerbate it.
I think that, as David Sidorsky mentioned, federation and secession
are both principles, but they are far from the only ones. The other one is
to find out whether it's possible any longer to have a multinational, multi–
ethnic unit, which, after all, Bosnia-Herzegovina was. At that time, the
government argued that it was one of the few regions left in the former
Communist Europe which had managed to have a functioning multi–
ethnic and multinational society. Is that in any way possible now?
Slavenka D rakulic:
I'm grateful that you pointed out one of the essen–
tial issues, the hesitation of America and Europe to put the lives of their
soldiers at risk, and rightly so. But on the issue of other kinds of solutions,
it comes down to the question, "Is it possible for a multi-ethnic state like
Bosnia to exist, or does it really have to divide into cantons and
provinces, ethnically cleansed in this or that way?" Whether we are
dealing with the federation or with secession or with the possibility of a
multi-ethnic community, we must address the question of the borders and
the question of the minorities. If we are speaking about nation-states,
then we have to define the borders and minorites. Of course, the most
substantial difference is whether this happens with a war or without war.
The problem with the war is that while we discuss and try to find the
solutions, it goes on. And in the face of it I, both as a writer and as a
person who lives there, feel quite helpless.
Edith Kurzweil:
Slavenka, thank you very much.
