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10
Opinion&Analysis
IsEuropelosingtheBalkans?,MiljenkoJergović
keentopresentitselfasAlbania’sdefenderintheBalkans–afactthattheAlbanian
premierisonlytooeagertoexploit.AndiftheSarajevomediaaretobebelieved,
IzetbegovićattendedtheweddingasErdoğan’spersonalfriend.AsErdoğanhimself
describesit,Izetbegović’sfather,AlijaIzetbegović,madeadeathbedpromisein
whichheentrustedBosniaandHerzegovinatoTurkey’sguardianship.
TislegacyisafrequenttopicofdiscussioninSarajevo,althoughusuallywith
scantregardforthefactthatBosniaandHerzegovinaisacountryofthreenations
andthreefaiths,andthatitwouldbehardtofindanyoneamongtheothertwona-
tionswhowouldacceptTurkeyasaguardian.Butthensuchlackofconsideration
forone’sneighboursishardlyacharacteristicoftheBożnjaksalone.InBiH,itis
somethingofanationalimperative.
Patronsaints
RecepTayyipErdoğanisbyfarthemostpopularpoliticianamongBożnjaks.
And,apparently,thisisnotsomethingthatbothersIzetbegović.Tepopularityof
theTurkishleader,onthecontrary,bolstersIzetbegović’sownpositionandprovides
theBożnjakswithapowerfulmoralbackinginanyargumentwiththeirSerbian
andCroatianneighbours.BożnjaksfeelprotectedbythefavouroftheSultanon
theBosphorusandarereadytofollowhimwithanardoursimilartothatofhis
Turkishadherents.WhenErdoğancallstheDutchandGermansfascistsandNazis,
heenjoysthetacitsupportoftheBożnjakpoliticalelite,andtheopensupportof
boththepopularmassesandalargesectionoftheSarajevomedia.WhenErdoğan
accusestheDutchofhavingorganisedtheSrebrenicamassacrewiththeultimate
intentionofexterminatingallEuropeanMuslims,
TeBelgradeauthorities
Izetbegovićstayssilent,allowingtheTurkishleader
tocoollyexploitthevictimsofanationotherthanhis
haveforyearsbeen
own,asiftheywerehisownproperty,orarecently
equidistancebetween
followingapolicyof
raisedbankloan.
VladimirPutinamongtheSerbsoftheRepublika
AparallelstatusisenjoyedbyRussianPresident
BrusselsandMoscow.
Srpska(thepredominantlySerbianentitythat,along
withtheBożnjak-CroatianFederation,makesupBos-
niaandHerzegovina).RepublikaSrpska’spresident
MiloradDodikheadsofftoMoscowtosecurepro-
tectionforhissemi-secessionistreferendumandwhentheUSStateDepartment
imposes(albeitsymbolic)sanctions,RussianemissariesarriveinDodik’scapital
BanjaLukatostiffenhisresolve.
