The President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, met today in Podgorica with the President of the Montenegrin Assembly, Andrija Mandić.
After the meeting, Dodik stated that he has offered Montenegro’s institutions an agreement on special ties, similar to the agreement with Serbia.
“According to the Dayton Agreement, Republika Srpska has the right to special ties agreements with its neighbors, and Montenegro is undoubtedly one of them. That’s why I’ve offered an agreement to Montenegro’s institutions, similar to what we have with Serbia,” the President of Republika Srpska said.
Dodik expressed support for Montenegro’s orientation towards the EU, highlighting that Republika Srpska also supports this path.
“I am here to support peace, stability, and development in Montenegro. I am here to support its orientation towards the EU,” Dodik stated.
He emphasized efforts in BiH to achieve negotiation status.
“The European path is fine, but it cannot compromise the identity and constitutional position of Republika Srpska, nor can it promote the unitarization and centralization of BiH. BiH can follow Belgium’s example on the European path, and in this regard, we share certain values with Montenegro’s policies,” Dodik said.
He conveyed that Republika Srpska is not a disruptive factor but, according to the Constitution, is part of BiH and does not accept the degradation of the Constitution.
Dodik highlighted that Republika Srpska is against BiH joining NATO.
“We understand Montenegro’s status and respect it, but we expect our stance to be respected as well. NATO is unacceptable to us because it bombed Republika Srpska without a Security Council decision, and then Serbia and Montenegro. These are issues we cannot overlook,” Dodik remarked.
The President of Republika Srpska mentioned that he offered Montenegro to join the mega-project of constructing the Buk Bijela hydroelectric power plant and asked not to block it anymore.
“If they don’t want to, then they should not block us,” Dodik said.
Dodik noted that if there’s an intention for Montenegro to rejoin the project, there is a readiness to accept it, stating that electricity will be produced exclusively by hydroelectric power plants, thermal power plants, solar power plants, and wind farms.
“We are offering Montenegro to join this mega-project,” Dodik highlighted, adding that the project does not encroach upon or flood waters in Montenegro but rather aims to continue in cooperation with Serbia, which is the majority owner of the project.
Mandić emphasized that respecting the Dayton Agreement means respecting Republika Srpska, asserting that there’s no BiH without Republika Srpska.
Mandić said that the special ties agreement, presented by Dodik today, is in accordance with the Dayton Agreement and that he will open a dialogue with coalition partners to present what the agreement proposes.
“Republika Srpska expresses a desire to build special relations with Montenegro, and I believe this is not to the detriment of any citizen of Montenegro,” he stated.
Source: RTRS
