Bosnian state prosecutors issue arrest warrant for Bosnian Serb leader

Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik was sentenced a week ago by Bosnian courts to one year in jail and six years away from politics after being found guilty of failing to cooperate with international peace envoy Christian Schmidt. Dodik confronted the courts by issuing bans on national police and prosecutors to enter Republika Srpska.

Bosnian courts reacted by suspending Dodik’s legislative move to ban national police from entering his territory, summoning the help of European Forces in Bosnia & Herzegovina (EUFOR). It was announced on their website that additional Reserve Forces may enter the territory in a peacekeeping mission. 

Dodik and two other Bosnian Serb leaders, Republika Srpska PM Radovan Višković as well as National Assembly Speaker Nenad Stevandić were summoned by the courts for questioning. The trio ignored the appeal, leading to an arrest warrant issued by the Bosnian Prosecutor’s Office earlier today [March 12th]. Dodik reacted to the arrest warrant by showing it to journalists in a press conference in Banja Luka, insisting that “This a politically motivated [move], and we do not want to take part in it”. 

Russian News Agency TASS reported that a meeting is planned between Dodik and Russian president Vladimir Putin, although the date remains unknown. Putin released a statement last week through TASS, in which he expresses support for the secession of Republika Srpska: “The Russian side also expressed solidarity with the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik”. In today’s Banja Luka press conference, Dodik told journalists he would ask Russia to veto EUFOR’s actions, scheduled for November in the UN Security Council. 

Dodik is known to be close to Russia, having met Vladimir Putin in May 2023 in Moscow. He repeatedly has exclaimed his position on the invasion in Ukraine: “What we are doing in the current circumstances is that we reject any possibility of joining Western sanctions against Russia”. Dodik himself has been targeted by US and UK sanctions for obstructing the Dayton Agreement, which ensured Bosnia’s territory sovereignty after the Serbian invasion of Bosnia after the split of Yugoslavia.

Dodik previously relied on the support of the Trump administration in his first team. However, shortly after Dodik’s sentence to one year in prison was announced, US Secretary Of State Marco Rubio condemned Dodik’s secessionist moves on Twitter: “The actions of Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik are undermining Bosnia and Herzegovina’s institutions and threatening its security and stability. Our nation encourages political leaders in Bosnia and Herzegovina to engage in constructive and responsible dialogue. We call on our partners in the region to join us in pushing back against this dangerous and destabilizing behavior.”

Dodik also told journalists in the press conference that he “would never leave Republika Srpska. They want to see me in handcuffs, but that doesn’t mean they can do anything”. The Bosnian Serb leader also had a strong message for the EUFOR commandant Florin-Marian Barbu: “He is trying to strengthen his career with threats. I tell him that the people of RS will not win, his tanks are useless. He can freely hang the cat by the tail with threats.”