Conversations with a significant number of important politicians at the Diplomatic Forum in Antalya demonstrate that Republika Srpska is recognized as a crucial interlocutor in political processes in the region and the world, stated the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, upon his return from Antalya. There, along with the Serbian member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Željka Cvijanović, and at the invitation of the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, he participated in the Diplomatic Forum.
Dodik emphasized that Republika Srpska supports the European path but only under the condition that its strength is not diminished.
Meetings with significant world leaders debunk the myth of Republika Srpska’s isolation, according to analysts.
The Turkish President, the Hungarian Prime Minister, heads of Russian, Hungarian, Slovak diplomacy, the EU’s Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue, Miroslav Lajčák – a series of meetings took place at the margins of the Diplomatic Forum. For the President of Republika Srpska, this is proof of Republika Srpska’s importance in all political processes.
“Our interlocutors understand the position of Republika Srpska and have an understanding of our stance that we support the European path, but it must be clear that the constitutional structure of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is composed of Republika Srpska and the Federation, is visible. We are not ready to move along European paths while diminishing the strength of Republika Srpska,” Dodik highlighted.
The strength of Republika Srpska is growing in diplomatic circles, confirmed by a series of significant meetings with officials who resonate globally. Political scientist Vojislav Savić, while calling for caution, particularly points to Turkey’s relationship with Bosnia and Herzegovina, a country that has redirected its diplomatic activity in recent years.
“For several years, due to good relations with Erdoğan, Turkey not only does not create problems but, on the contrary, contributes to stabilization in Bosnia and Herzegovina by consistently insisting on an agreement among the three nations living here,” says Savić.
The meetings in Antalya are significant for Republika Srpska, a state-forming entity with an important decision-making package in Bosnia and Herzegovina, emphasizes SNSD MP in the National Assembly of Republika Srpska, Srđan Mazalica.
“Republika Srpska has established itself as a subject of international law, as someone whose decision-making is crucial at the level of Bosnia and Herzegovina when it comes to joining NATO, imposing sanctions on Russia, aligning in certain geopolitical moments,” said Mazalica.
Republika Srpska has firmly opposed this, despite the pressures it faces. Former Foreign Minister of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Živadin Jovanović, highlights that the United States, Germany, and Christian Schmidt aim to strip Republika Srpska of its competencies and leave everything agreed upon in Dayton as an empty shell. However, he says, the Diplomatic Forum in Antalya showed that it would not go as the Western powers had planned.
“It is very important to show that pressures, threats, and sanctions initiated by the US, especially against the leadership of Republika Srpska and President Dodik, do not have unified support even among the most significant allies, such as Turkey,” says Jovanović.
For publicist Igor Ivanović, the meetings in Turkey, which he rates as quality plus, following Belarus and Russia, confirmed that Republika Srpska is an indispensable factor in the region.
“Although Republika Srpska is not officially a state, it possesses a certain capacity of a state. But what is most important, it has guarantees from Serbia as an internationally recognized state. Any agreement concerning Republika Srpska, without its active participation, is meaningless,” says Ivanović.
Analysts agree that it is also significant that the President of Republika Srpska was received like all other heads of state – as a head of state, not just a head of an entity.
“The President of Republika Srpska is the President of Republika Srpska. He was elected by the citizens. But the fact that he is recognized as an equal statesman among other heads of government and states in the world is very important. It is Turkey’s message to us that their perception of us is respected,” says Savić.
Everyone agrees that the focus is now back on the agreement among domestic politicians, without foreign interference, and preserving the position of Republika Srpska guaranteed by Dayton.
Source: RTRS
