Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said today, in response to the decision by the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Bosnia and Herzegovina to strip Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik of his mandate, that it is wrong for anyone to believe they can undermine a legitimacy that comes from the people. He emphasized that Serbia stands by its people and by Republika Srpska.
Vučić noted that Dodik is now turning to the people to decide whether or not to accept the CEC’s decision, or that of the Court of BiH, because he was elected directly by the people of Republika Srpska.
“Dodik is not the generator of the crisis—he is responding to what has already occurred,” Vučić stated.
He called on everyone to remain calm and expressed hope that a way out of the serious crisis facing the entire BiH—one which, he said, is not the fault of Republika Srpska—can be found.
“Someone believed they could undermine a mandate granted by the people. That is wrong. My plea to all is: stay calm, be rational, and avoid any escalation. We must stand by our people and by Republika Srpska. Our policy will always be to support our people, to stand with Republika Srpska, and to preserve peace,” Vučić said in an interview for Belgrade’s TV Prva.
The CEC of BiH today issued a decision to terminate the mandate of Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik, elected in the 2022 general elections. The decision can be appealed.
The move follows the ruling by the Appellate Division of the Court of BiH, which upheld a previous first-instance verdict sentencing Dodik to one year in prison and six years of a political ban for “failing to respect the decisions of Christian Schmidt.”
Source: RTRS
