It was with great sadness that we learned of Senator Bob Dole’s passing this morning. Our most heartfelt condolences go out to his wife, Senator Elizabeth Dole and their daughter, Robin. The United States lost one of their greats today, and Bosnia and Herzegovina one of their great friends.

According to a statement from his family, the Senator “died early this morning in his sleep. At his death, at age 98, he had served the United States of America faithfully for 79 years.”

Senator Dole stood behind Bosnia when it was easy to look away, in a time of dire need and great sorrow. Today we all stand in solidarity with his family, and pay tribute to a man who fought for truth, democracy and justice, in the U.S. and in Bosnia.

Senator Dole received the Key to the City of Sarajevo in July of 2019. When the city’s Mayor at the time presented the award to the Senator, he stated “Sarajevo handed him its key today, as Sarajevo is a key for life in togetherness between people of different religions and traditions. That is a model which we maintained and built for centuries. Today we symbolically handed it to [Senator] Dole.”

May he rest in eternal peace.