Milorad Dodik

The Republika Srpska parliament, a Bosnian Serb-dominated part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, is preparing to discuss a declaration that has exacerbated tensions in the country and heightened fears of disintegration and has brought back memories of ethnic violence a quarter of a century ago.

In that sense, Bosnia's sovereignty can only be truly championed by its own citizens. Still, it is striking that for a country which at one time was the poster child of the triumphs of international liberalism, the cause of liberal democracy in Bosnia effectively falls on deaf ears in most Western capitals.

Belgrade – Visiting Belgrade as part of the preparations for the next summit of the Brdo-Brijuni Process, President Borut Pahor met his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vučić on Sunday. Pahor said that the process of EU enlargement to the Western Balkans was too slow, which led to renewed policies of nationalism and border changes that threaten security.

Then September brought a flurry of meetings: Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu travelled to Serbia to open a Turkish consulate in the city of Novi Pazar, part of the southwestern region of Sandzak, straddling both Serbia and Montenegro and mainly populated by Bosniak Muslims; Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic visited Erdogan in Istanbul; and Erdogan met Croatian President Zoran Milanov

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (C) and Bosnia presidency member Milorad Dodik (L) meeting in Sarajevo, July 8, 2019. Photo: EPA-EFE/FEHIM DEMIR

The Bosnian Serb leader earlier threatened to withdraw all Bosnian Serb officials from state-level institutions and re-establish a Bosnian Serb army, fomenting fresh fears of Bosnia's collapse and of armed conflict.

Ljubljana – Prime Minister Janez Janša met on Sunday Milorad Dodik, the Serbian member of the Bosnia-Herzegovina presidency, to discuss the political situation in Bosnia-Herzegovina and the region. Janša described the meeting on Twitter as a substantive exchange about the situation in the country.

Bosnian Presidency member Milorad Dodik (R) shakes hand with Austrian Foreign Minister Michael Linhart (L) as he arrives for a meeting at the Bosnian Presidency, 15 October 2021. Photo: EPA-EFE/FEHIM DEMIR

Bosnia and Herzegovina faces possible break-up and renewed conflict if Bosnian Serb political leader Milorad Dodik finally goes ahead with his separatist agenda-but is he serious about seceding, or just seeking to consolidate political power?

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, and Bosnian presidency members Sefik Dzeferovic, Zeljko Komsic and Milorad Dodik in Belgrade, October 2019. Photo: EPA-EFE/ANDREJ CUKIC.

The NGOs' joint letter also criticised the inaction of the international community and recalled the consequences of the 1990s war in Bosnia.

The RS is almost wholly economically dependent on Sarajevo, and on increasingly frequent financial transfusions from Belgrade.