Now that IFOR has completed most of its military tasks, it will conduct more visible and wide ranging security patrols throughout Bosnia. This will have the added benefit of restricting Karadzic and Mladic's freedom of movement. It will make their active participation in the election campaign extremely risky and extremely difficult. Elections are a part of the beginning, not the end, of the hard work required to bring democracy to Bosnia. But the whole point of Dayton is to give them the chance to try.
Elections are the necessary next step along the long, difficult road to a unified, peaceful Bosnia.
If we let them slip, other crucial provisions of the Dayton plan could slip. And that's a slope we don't want to be on. Thus far, we've held to Dayton with fierce determination. Now, it is our responsibility to bring that same determination to making sure the elections in Bosnia are free and fair. As we look to the elections and beyond, it is absolutely vital that we avoid the paralysis of pessimism.