WASHINGTON—Today, the leadership of the U.S. Helsinki Commission, Chairman Senator Roger Wicker (MS), Co-Chairman Representative Joe Wilson (SC-02), Ranking Member Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (RI), and Ranking Member Representative Steve Cohen (TN-09), issued the following statement in response to the reckless actions of Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik, his associates, and RS institutions:
“We strongly condemn Milorad Dodik’s recent destabilizing and secessionist actions, which risk sparking inter-ethnic conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina. His efforts to defy, invalidate, and supplant Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (BiH) institutions within Republika Srpska constitute a direct assault on BiH’s sovereignty and territorial integrity as well as the Dayton Accords that have preserved peace in the country for nearly three decades.
“Dodik’s overt hostility toward BiH’s constitutional order is enabled by Russian and Serbian support and is incompatible with the country’s future as a stable and prosperous member of the European Union. Our EU partners should make this clear by following the United States’ lead in imposing punishing sanctions on Dodik and his accomplices. If this cannot be accomplished within the EU because of member state obstruction, then European countries should do so individually. We welcome the recent troop increase to the EU’s Operation Althea. We encourage EU countries to augment further the size and capabilities of the EUFOR presence so that it can credibly preserve a safe and secure environment in BiH during this political crisis. We also urge Moscow and Belgrade to refrain from further enabling Dodik to destabilize the region.”
Background:
On February 26, a BiH court found Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik and a fellow defendant guilty of failing to implement the decisions of the internationally designated High Representative, which is responsible for overseeing the US-negotiated Dayton Accords that ended the Bosnian War and established BiH’s current system of government nearly 30 years ago. The court sentenced Dodik to one year in prison and banned him from serving as president for six years.
In response, Dodik fomented a political crisis by orchestrating the passage of a raft of secessionist and unconstitutional laws in the People’s Assembly of Republika Srpska (RS) and defying the authority of state institutions in RS. In addition to illegally arrogating state-like power to the RS and creating parallel institutions, he pressured ethnic Serbs to resign from BiH state institutions or face the confiscation of their property in RS. Dodik also announced plans to create an RS “border police” and convert the inter-entity boundary line between the RS and the Federation of BiH into a “border.” He simultaneously flouted summons and warrants for his arrest stemming from his secessionist moves, rendering him a fugitive from justice.
On March 7, Secretary of State Marco Rubio described Dodik’s actions as a threat to BiH’s security and stability. The secretary called on European partners to join us in pushing back against this dangerous and destabilizing behavior. The United States has imposed numerous rounds of sanctions on Dodik as well as his family, businesses, and political associates that enable his secessionist brinksmanship. The European Union has been unable to follow suit given its inability to secure consensus from its member states. The European Union Force Bosnia and Herzegovina (EUFOR), the military deployment charged with overseeing implementation of the Dayton Accords, recently announced it would soon temporarily add 400 troops to its approximately 1,200-strong contingent in the country.