On Wednesday, officials held the first of a series of events commemorating the Dayton Peace Accords20thAnniversary. International figures attended the dedication of the Ambassador Richard Holbrooke Plaza near the intersection of Salem Avenue and Edwin C. Moses Boulevard.
Holbrooke was instrumental in brokering the accords that ended the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1995.
Visiting Dayton to celebrate the anniversary, IvoKomsic, the Mayor of Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina’s capital city) says there were numerous attempts to broker peace during the three-year war.
“The difference between all the previous negotiations and the Dayton Peace agreement is that the American administration was very, very determined to reach peace," he said.
Komsic spoke to WYSO through a translator Tuesday night at a dinner at the Sinclair Community College Ponitz Center. He said there are weaknesses in the accords that still affect the country today. Komsic specifically cited an instance where negotiators, including Holbrooke, omitted elements of the Washington Agreement, an earlier cease-fire agreement signed in March of 1994.
Commemorations will continue Thursday with a private luncheon featuring former President Bill Clinton.
