Serbia Assists Dodik's Election Campaign in Bosnia

As Bosnia's election campaign begins in earnest, Milorad Dodik's own campaign to win the Serbian seat on the Bosnian presidency is receiving support from the government of nearby Serbia.

"Through Dodik, Russia's card in the Balkans remains in the game, or it has an illusion of its role and power in this area," Bojan Klacar, from the Centre for Free Elections and Democracy, CeSid, told BIRN.

Dodik is well known for his passionately pro-Russian stance.

Klacar also noted that, as the political scene in Serbia turns towards the nationalist right, the future of Bosnia's mainly Serbian entity, Republika Srpska, has become a more important topic.

Bosnia and Herzegovina is marking the final countdown for elections that take place in a few weeks' time on October 7.

Although the official campaign only started 30 days before polling day, all the parties have been out campaigning for months.

Dodik, hitherto President of the Republika Srpska and head of the ruling party in the entity, the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats, SNSD, has his eye on the Serbian seat on Bosnia's three-member state presidency.

Voters on October 7 will cast ballots for the three seats on the state presidency, the state-level House of Representatives, for the National Assembly in Republika Srpska and the House of Representatives in the mainly Bosniak and Croat Federation entity.

They will also elect the assemblies in the Federation's ten cantons and in the District of Brcko.

On September 5, Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic stated that Republika "Srpska has support from Serbia", apparently referring mainly to Dodik.

"Top Serbian officials will arrive in Banja Luka on September 17, when the Russian...