Trump Win Boosts Bosnian Serbs' US Lobbying Hopes

Donald Trump's victory has reinvigorated Republika Srpska, RS representatives in Washington as the shock development is being interpreted as a new opportunity for the entity, which already spends heavily on lobbying, to promote itself to US policymakers.

Obrad Kesic, head of the RS representative office in Washington, expressed hope that RS would get a better deal from US foreign policy under a Trump presidency.

"It's an opportunity for RS to get a fairer hearing in Washington DC," Kesic told BIRN on Wednesday.

He said his office has been in contact with Trump's campaign for some time now and that talks are in progress for a high-level RS delegation, possibly including RS President Milorad Dodik, to attend the new president's inauguration in January.

Kurt Bassuener, a senior associate at the Democratization Policy Council, told BIRN that lobbying by RS in Washington had reaped dividends in the past and that Trump's election presents a chance for RS leaders to push their line.

"I think [the RS is] seeing that there is now a far more favourable alignment of the stars in Washington," Bassuener said.

The RS government has poured millions into lobbying in the past, including nearly $5 million on consultants in 2010 alone.

Expenditure appears to have fallen since then, although documents filed under the US Foreign Agents Registration Act show that the RS government was still paying consultancy firm the Myrmidon Group $44,965 a month as of the beginning of 2016. It is still listed as a registered agent for RS.

RS also pays the firm Picard, Kentz & Rowe $90,000 per month in a contract that runs to the end of 2016.

That makes an annual total of more than $1.6 million, plus travel expenses awarded to both firms as...