The Office of the High Representative (OHR) for Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) expects the leadership of Republika Srpska (RS) to withdraw its decision on a referendum if it wants to prevent a reaction by High Representative Valentin Inzko, OHR told Tanjug, describing the referendum as a dangerous adventure.

In a written statement, OHR estimated that the Dayton peace agreement is faced with the greatest challenge due to the actions of RS leadership, and warns that the international community cannot ignore the decision to proceed with a referendum on an issue which is within the jurisdiction of the state of BiH.

OHR explained that this issue is not negotiable for one simple reason - that it would undermine the Dayton agreement that brought peace to Serbs, Croats, Bosniaks and all other people who live in BiH.

To allow the conclusions of the RS National Assembly and the decision on a referendum to remain in effect would be like opening Pandora's box, it does not bring anyone any good, the OHR said.

If the RS authorities are worried about the work of judicial authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is another way to address this issue through the legitimate institutions of the state as part of a constructive process of constitutional reform, the OHR said.

The international community has a majority consensus on the issue and the European Union agreed at the highest level that a referendum crosses the red line, the OHR said.

The international community expects from the RS to reverse the conclusions and decision on the referendum. If that does not happen, the high representative will have no choice but to react, the OHR said, expressing hope that RS leadership will seriously consider all the implications that their decision may cause.