Autonomous Province of Western Bosnia
| Autonomous Province of Western Bosnia | ||||||||||
| Autonomna Pokrajina Zapadna Bosna | ||||||||||
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 Map showing the location of Western Bosnia (cyan) between
the Republic of Serbian Krajina and Republika Srpska. |
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| Capital | Velika Kladuša | |||||||||
| Government | Not specified | |||||||||
| Governor | ||||||||||
| • | 1993–1995 | Fikret Abdić | ||||||||
| History | ||||||||||
| • | Established | September 27, 1993 | ||||||||
| • | Disestablished | August 7, 1995 | ||||||||
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The Autonomous Province of Western Bosnia (Bosnian: Autonomna Pokrajina Zapadna Bosna) was a small unrecognised state that existed in the northwest of Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1993 and 1995. It consisted of the town of Velika Kladuša (its capital) and a few nearby villages. It was proclaimed as a result of secessionist politics by Fikret Abdić against the Bosnian central government during the Bosnian War. For a short time in 1995 it was known as the Republic of Western Bosnia.
In 1993, according to journalist Anthony Loyd, Fikret Abdić decided to try to carve out a little state for himself and succeeded in recruiting enough followers to make his dreams a reality. Abdić was able to hold power over his mini-state by using cult like propaganda techniques over his followers and Serbian arms and military training. "Talking to his autonomist followers was much the same as speaking with cult converts anywhere in the world: a wooden dead-end dialogue hallmarked by the absence of individual rationale and logic."
The economy of Western Bosnia was largely reliant on the Agrokomerc company of Velika Kladuša.
The Autonomous Province cooperated with Serbia as well as Croatia against the Bosnian government in light of the Karađorđevo agreement meant to redistribute Bosnia and Herzegovina between Croatia and Serbia. Fikret Abdić's role in undermining the Bosnian regime was awarded by Croatian regime as well as Serbian. Agrokomerc was granted a custom-free trade zone in the Croatian port of Rijeka, and free trade with Serbian-controlled territories. Trade between Western Bosnia and Croatia was ongoing during the Bosnian war.
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