After meeting with Milorad Dodik, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held a press conference in which he spoke about the current political situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Lavrov stated that during the meeting they discussed cooperation between various agencies, but that the main focus was international relations, especially in the context of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He particularly emphasized that this year we are marking 30 years since the NATO bombing and that December will mark three decades since the signing of the Dayton Agreement.
According to him, the West is striving to establish complete control over Bosnia and Herzegovina and to reduce the rights of the Serbs living there. “What is happening in Bosnia and Herzegovina represents the worst political crisis in the last 30 years and threatens to destabilize the entire Balkans,” Lavrov warned.
The Russian minister emphasized that Russia is one of the guarantors of the Dayton Agreement and that during the talks they exchanged views on its implementation. “The Dayton Agreement has no alternative because post-war BiH was built on it. This primarily concerns the equality of the three constituent peoples and the two entities, which must have broad powers,” he added.
Lavrov criticized Western countries for, as he claims, attempts to limit the powers of the entities and Serbs in BiH. “The West is openly trying to deprive Serbs of their guaranteed rights and establish a subservient government, judiciary and other institutions,” he said. He particularly condemned alleged attempts to remove Serbian leaders through fabricated indictments, referring to Milorad Dodik as the “legally elected and legitimate president of Republika Srpska.”
Finally, he announced that the situation would be discussed in detail on October 31 at the UN Security Council, where Russia currently holds the presidency. “We will prepare thoroughly, and our partners will have to answer numerous uncomfortable questions,” Lavrov concluded.
Dodik: RS went through a difficult period with the American and Brussels administrations
Dodik said that Russia correctly views the situation in BiH, defends international law and the architecture of the Dayton Agreement.
“The relations between Russia and Republika Srpska are very good and I am grateful for Russia’s understanding of the political situation in BiH. Russia also points out that the Dayton structure in BiH, consisting of Serbs, Bosniaks and Croats, must be maintained,” he stressed, stating that he informed Lavrov that the RS went through a difficult period with the previous American and Brussels administrations, which wanted BiH to be a country governed by the principle of one man, one vote.
“The first day after the signing of the Dayton Agreement, the West began to dismantle it. Bosniaks never agreed to Dayton, they said it was a straitjacket for them. We Serbs said it was a national holiday,” he added.
He pointed out that “Bosniaks did not even accept the participation of the Russian Federation, which is the guarantor of Dayton.”
“They accepted to be collaborators with Western structures, and these are solutions that only benefited them. High representatives introduced solutions that are not in accordance with the Constitution, which shows that they have not given up on solutions that suit them,” he emphasized, stating that today we are at a very important moment.
Meetings between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Dodik were held on February 21 and October 25, 2024 in Kazan, June 6, 2024 in St. Petersburg, and April 1, 2025 in Moscow. Lavrov met with Dodik on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomatic Forum on March 1, 2024.
The Central Election Commission decided at the end of August that early elections for the president of Republika Srpska would be held on November 23, after Milorad Dodik’s mandate was annulled due to his final court verdict.
According to the decision, only candidates of Serbian nationality will be able to run for president of RS. The mandate of the president elected in early elections will last until the general elections in 2026, when, along with others, the president of the RS will be elected for a new four-year term.
