Bosnia’s Serb-majority region has banned the country’s centrally-run justice system from operating on its territory after a court demanded the resignation of the region’s leader.
This week, Milorad Dodik, the president of Bosnia’s autonomous Serb-majority Republika Srpska, was given a one-year jail sentence and ordered to step down for approving laws that suspended rulings by the constitutional court and an international peace envoy.
The 65-year-old politician was not present for the hearing and remains in power.
On Thursday, lawmakers in the regional parliament hit back by passing laws barring prosecutors and courts run by the central authorities in Sarajevo from working within the republic and introducing punishments for those who defy the ban.
The move will sharpen the sense of fragmentation in the multiethnic state, which was internally divided into two administrative entities—one mainly Serb, the other mainly Bosniak and Croat—as part of the settlement to end the 1992-1995 war that killed over 100,000 people.
Dodik, who has ruled the Republika Srpska for six years, has argued that Bosnia’s state judiciary and other services are not backed by the post-conflict constitution but were created as a result of rulings by peace envoys he regards as illegitimate.
More broadly, he has said he wants the region to join neighboring Serbia and has developed warm relations with politicians in Belgrade and further afield, most noticeably in Russia.
The 65-year-old politician was not present for the hearing and remains in power.
On Thursday, lawmakers in the regional parliament hit back by passing laws barring prosecutors and courts run by the central authorities in Sarajevo from working within the republic and introducing punishments for those who defy the ban.
The move will sharpen the sense of fragmentation in the multiethnic state, which was internally divided into two administrative entities—one mainly Serb, the other mainly Bosniak and Croat—as part of the settlement to end the 1992-1995 war that killed over 100,000 people.
Dodik, who has ruled the Republika Srpska for six years, has argued that Bosnia’s state judiciary and other services are not backed by the post-conflict constitution but were created as a result of rulings by peace envoys he regards as illegitimate.
More broadly, he has said he wants the region to join neighboring Serbia and has developed warm relations with politicians in Belgrade and further afield, most noticeably in Russia.
Belgrade and Moscow show support
On Thursday, Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vučić joined Dodik in the republic’s largest city, Banja Luka, in a show of solidarity with the convicted leader. Vučić said that the court verdict was directed against the Republika Srpska and the Serbian people as a whole, private broadcaster b92 reported.
“I came here to support our people, to tell them that Serbia is with them, but also to support Milorad Dodik, while not endangering anyone,” he said.
Officials in Moscow also expressed their support, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warning that the court judgment could “lead to the destabilization of the situation” in the region and saying the indictment was aimed at “all patriotic Serbian forces.”
While on a visit to the Russian capital, Serbia’s deputy prime minister went further, accusing the European Union of targeting Dodik.
“The EU is trying to bring about conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina by trying to overthrow Milorad Dodik and destroy the Republika Srpska,” Aleksandar Vulin, quoted by the PAP press agency.
Bosnia, a country of around 3 million people, has been an official candidate for EU accession since 2022 and is required to undergo reforms to eventually join the bloc.
After Dodik’s sentencing, the EU urged all sides to “refrain from and renounce provocative, divisive rhetoric and actions, including questioning the constitutional order, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of the country,” Reuters reported.
The U.S. State Department criticized the decision to ban centrally-run courts and reiterated its support for the order established to end the war in Bosnia by 1995’s Dayton Agreement.
“We firmly oppose any actions by local leaders that would undermine security and stability. We support Dayton and Bosnia and Herzegovina’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” spokesperson Tammy Bruce posted on social media on Thursday.
“I came here to support our people, to tell them that Serbia is with them, but also to support Milorad Dodik, while not endangering anyone,” he said.
Officials in Moscow also expressed their support, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warning that the court judgment could “lead to the destabilization of the situation” in the region and saying the indictment was aimed at “all patriotic Serbian forces.”
While on a visit to the Russian capital, Serbia’s deputy prime minister went further, accusing the European Union of targeting Dodik.
“The EU is trying to bring about conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina by trying to overthrow Milorad Dodik and destroy the Republika Srpska,” Aleksandar Vulin, quoted by the PAP press agency.
Europeans urge calm
Bosnia, a country of around 3 million people, has been an official candidate for EU accession since 2022 and is required to undergo reforms to eventually join the bloc.
After Dodik’s sentencing, the EU urged all sides to “refrain from and renounce provocative, divisive rhetoric and actions, including questioning the constitutional order, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of the country,” Reuters reported.
The U.S. State Department criticized the decision to ban centrally-run courts and reiterated its support for the order established to end the war in Bosnia by 1995’s Dayton Agreement.
“We firmly oppose any actions by local leaders that would undermine security and stability. We support Dayton and Bosnia and Herzegovina’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” spokesperson Tammy Bruce posted on social media on Thursday.
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