U.S. sanctions three Bosnians for allegedly threatening peace, stability

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States on Wednesday sanctioned three Bosnians, including the former chief of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s spy agency, for allegedly undermining democratic institutions and endangering peace and stability in the Western Balkans.

The men “constitute a threat to regional stability, institutional trust, and the aspirations of those seeking democratic governance,” Under Secretary of the Treasury Brian Nelson said in a statement.

The statement said that Osman Mehmedagic, the former head of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Intelligence Security Agency, misused the state-owned telecommunications company to benefit the Party of Democratic Action.

The party, which predominantly represents Muslim Bosniaks and is known by the acronym SDA, is led by Bakir Izetbegovic, a former member of the country’s tripartite presidency.

Specifically, the Treasury statement said, Mehmedagic collected “cellular activity” on politicians unaffiliated with the SDA and used his “position, threats and connections” to press a coalition of eight other parties to support the SDA.

“There is also credible information that Mehmedagic has collaborated with criminal networks for personal and party enrichment,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement. “This activity reflects a larger pattern of behavior by Mehmedagic and SDA to use positions of authority for personal and party gain.”

Mehmedagic left his post in February. His whereabouts were not immediately known.

The Treasury statement said Edin Gacanin was designated for leading a criminal cartel involved in drug trafficking “across multiple countries,” money-laundering and affiliation with a U.S.-sanctioned transnational crime group.

It called Gacanin “one of the world’s most notorious narcotics traffickers.” His whereabouts were not immediately known.

Dragan Stankovic, a lieutenant of Milorad Dodik, president of Republika Srpska, the Bosnian Serb-dominated entity, was sanctioned for promoting a law that sought to “usurp” state property in contravention of the national constitution, a court ruling and a 1995 accord that ended a four-year war, the statement said.

Stankovic and Dodik did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Under the designations, any property or interests in property held by the three are blocked and Americans generally are prohibited from doing business with them.

(Reporting by Jonathan Landay; Editing by Daniel Wallis)