Senior Russian official in Banja Luka, Dodik speaks out against sanctions against Russia

Russia will protect the interests of Republika Srpska and the Dayton Agreement, said Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Alexander Grushko, who met with officials of this BiH entity in Banja Luka on April 21st.

He accused Western countries, "especially Berlin and London, of wanting to strip the Serbs of their constitutional powers and take control."

"Sanctions cannot affect our bilateral relations and we will pursue the implementation of our cooperation through an agreed agenda," Grushko said at a press conference, also criticizing the institution of the High Representative in BiH.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has joined EU sanctions against Russia, but their implementation is opposed by representatives of the RS government, led by Milorad Dodik, president of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats.

Grushko is the first Russian official of this rank to come to the RS since the beginning of the Russian occupation of Ukraine.

The EU and the US Embassy in BiH did not respond to Radio Free Europe's requests for comment on the announced visit.

Milorad Dodik said that he "supports the Russian Special Military Operation in Ukraine and that Republika Srpska will not allow sanctions to be imposed on Russia."

Russia launched its attack on Ukraine in 2022, under the pretext of conducting a “special military operation” and not a war against an independent neighboring country, part of whose territory it had annexed.

Dodik also addressed the issue of state property.

"If the property issue arises, RS will have to make its own decision on this, and it will be that we do not accept it and that we are ready for independent development," Dodik said.

In 2006, the High Representative in BiH exempted promising military property from the decision to stop the destruction of state property, so that it could be immediately registered with the state.

The BiH Defense Law stipulated that the state Ministry of Defense would take ownership of property necessary for the functioning of the Armed Forces as of 1 January 2006.

The Presidency of BiH, as the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, through several decisions determined the plan, structure and locations of the Armed Forces, and compiled a list of 63 promising military property locations. This number was later reduced to 57.

Visits from senior officials

Senior Russian officials rarely visit Banja Luka, the largest city and administrative center of RS.

The visits are mainly at the city level, such as the visit of representatives of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation for the city of Moscow to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of this entity in November last year.

Banja Luka is also frequently visited by representatives of the Russian education and healthcare sectors, who stay at the University of Banja Luka or the University Clinical Center.

In the last 10 years, senior Russian officials have visited RS three times.

Sergei Lavrov, the Russian Foreign Minister, last visited BiH in December 2020. At that time, he was on an official visit to Sarajevo, but he also visited East Sarajevo.

Two years ago, after visiting Sarajevo, Lavrov stayed in Banja Luka and visited the construction site of a Serbian-Russian temple and cultural center.

A few months before him, Valentina Matviyenko, the president of the Russian Federation Council, the upper house of the state parliament, was in Banja Luka.

She then declared that this entity is a "brotherly country of Russia" and that Moscow is against NATO's expansion into Europe.

The Geopost