The lobby group gathered around American judge Phillip Weiner is most responsible for the fact that the United States of America decided to donate 500,000 vaccines against the coronavirus to Bosnia and Herzegovina, which are produced by Pfizer/BioNTech.
Weiner confirmed for Klix.ba that he initiated the formation of the lobby group. Members of the lobby group were Nađa Škaljić, an international lawyer originally from Bosnia and Herzegovina who worked as a political advisor for the European Union, and in the team of prosecutors engaged in the case against the legally convicted war criminal Radovan Karadžić, former US ambassador for war crimes David J. Scheffer, US judge of the federal state of Delaware Richard Gebelein, judges Shireen Fisher and Patricia Whalen, prosecutor Susan Somers, professor David Pettigrew, John Fields, Patrick McCarthy, who is a member of the Working Group for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bob Carolan, Arthur Traldi, and others. It should be noted that Gebelein is a federal judge in Biden's home state of Delaware. The work of the lobby group was supported by the Working Group for Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Bosnian-Herzegovinian American Academy of Arts and Sciences (BHAAAS), and the New England Friends of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Weiner: My contribution to the procurement of vaccines for Bosnia and Herzegovina is in memory of my friend David Kamhi. In a statement to Klix.ba, Weiner explained why he decided to help Bosnia and Herzegovina. "My good friend, Professor David Kamhi, spent his life helping Bosnia and Herzegovina succeed. My contribution to the procurement of vaccines for Bosnia and Herzegovina is in memory of my friend David Kamhi. The citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina faced economic challenges, labor challenges, authorities, and the war, so they deserved to rest. They needed and deserved this big donation of vaccines from the USA," he said. He is grateful to President Biden for deciding to help Bosnia and Herzegovina in this way. "We saw extraordinary potential in the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and we will not allow the pandemic to prevent their development. When we saw people suffering and dying, there was no doubt that we had to do something. We would like to thank President Biden, the State Department, and everyone involved in the process of procuring vaccines. This donation will be a great help to a small and developing country that is fighting the pandemic," Weiner concluded. Škaljić pointed out that they were very persistent in their work. "We were persistent in looking for a way to get vaccines for Bosnia and Herzegovina. A special effort and skill were invested in lobbying all levels of the American government at a difficult moment for the world and for America itself. We are grateful to President Biden and the Administration for this capital support," she said.
Patrick McCarthy, who is a member of the Working Group for Bosnia and Herzegovina, highlighted the merits of Weiner's leadership. "Led by the extraordinary efforts of Phillip Weiner and his colleagues, this successful outcome is proof that joint action by individuals and groups can bring positive, constructive benefits to our beloved Bosnia and Herzegovina and its people. We are also humbled to have Biden in the White House as President, who once again responded to Bosnia when it needed it most. We can and should continue to build a secure and prosperous future on the strong partnership between the USA and Bosnia and Herzegovina," said McCarthy. Klix.ba is also expecting a comment from the American ambassador Eric Nelson, to whom the lobby group led by Weiner is especially grateful for his contribution to the realization of this important project. How the lobby group worked The lobby group worked for several months to secure a large number of vaccines for Bosnia and Herzegovina. To succeed in this, they directly contacted half of the US congressmen and senators; they influenced the State Department and the White House. They also contacted Biden himself. This is a great success for this lobby group, considering that a large number of countries have asked for help from the US. This is by far the largest donation of vaccines that Bosnia and Herzegovina will receive from a single country, while at the same time, the state government and the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina failed to purchase a single vaccine directly from a manufacturer. This is one of the biggest aids from one country to Bosnia and Herzegovina since the beginning of the pandemic. It is all the more significant because the country currently does not have enough vaccines, which are the only way to end the pandemic as soon as possible. The donation should be realized already during the next month, and it was announced that all 500,000 vaccines will be immediately delivered to Bosnia and Herzegovina. Weiner lived and worked in Sarajevo. Judge Weiner is significantly connected to Bosnia and Herzegovina because he was also a prosecutor at the Court in The Hague and a judge for war crimes cases at the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina. During the last pandemic wave in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was the deadliest so far, he initially tried to secure vaccines for the Jewish community in Bosnia and Herzegovina, to which he is very attached. This was reported at the end of April by the Jewish Telegraph Agency, which is dedicated to informing about the lives of Jews around the world. JTA's writing was also reported by Klix.ba, and one of the most influential Israeli newspapers, the Jerusalem Post, also reported on this. The aforementioned lobby group continues its work to help Bosnia and Herzegovina and is currently negotiating with Israel. (https://www.klix.ba/)