Bosnia and Herzegovina played a crucial role in the decline of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy but Bosnian soldiers fought courageously, Izetbegović pointed out.

Türk meanwhile said that the memorial unveiled today did not glorify the idea of heroism or military triumph, but was "a monument to human life and the tragedy of death".

He pointed to the upcoming anniversary of the start of WWI, saying that this would be an opportunity for politicians to reflect on the 20th century and think about ways to make the 21st century better.

Both him and Izetbegović called for "a century of peace" after "a century of wars" which according to them was strongly marked by WWII and WWI and also the recent war in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

There was more than 250,000 Bosnian troops in the Austro-Hungarian army and almost 5,000 of them lost their lives in the territory of present-day Slovenia, Izetbegović noted.

"The first world war poisoned the twentieth century, brought a cult of death, ideology of totalitarianism and carried the seeds of new wars. I hope that this chapter in history is over," the Slovenian president said.

After the unveiling of the memorial, designed by Slovenian sculptor of Bosnian descent Mirsad Begić, the Slovenian and Bosnian delegations visited a small WWI cemetery in the Alpine village.