While the "separatism" led by Dodik is reaffirmed in the session held in the Bosnian Serb Assembly last Sunday, Bosniak and Croatian politicians reiterate their demands for increased military measures in Bosnia and Herzegovina against Dodik's separatist actions.
Milorad Dodik, the Serbian member of the Presidency Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who has been frequently mentioned in the last year with his plans to leave the central government of Bosnia and Herzegovina and divide Bosnia, continues his separatist actions. Dodik pursues divisive ambitions such as withdrawing the Serb soldiers from the Bosnia and Herzegovina army and establishing an ‘army of the Republic of Serbia’, preventing the decisions of the Bosnia and Herzegovina judicial authorities from being implemented within the borders of the Serbian entity, and getting out of the state's national taxation system. While Dodik's separatist moves are seen as an attempt to establish a parallel state within the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, they are also interpreted as an open declaration of war against the Bosniaks and Croats in the country. Dodik's unacceptable demands are moving towards the point where these demands can turn the international crisis in Bosnia into a hot conflict.
DISCUSSIVE SESSION AT THE SERBIAN ASSEMBLY
At the extraordinary meeting of the Serbian Entity Assembly, the idea of secession from the central government of Bosnia and Herzegovina is reaffirmed. Dodik received authorization from the National Assembly of the Republika Srpska to transfer the strategically important powers of the State of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the Serbian Entity and withdraw from joint institutions such as the Bosnian Armed Forces, tax administration and judicial system within six months. In the session, there are also those from the Serbian opposition who opposed Dodik's separatist decisions.
BOSNIANS AND CROATS WORRIED
Dodik's separatist actions continue to draw the reaction of Bosnians and Croats, who are ethnic actors in Bosnia and Herzegovina politics. While the Democratic Action Party (SDA), of which the late Alija Izetbegovic was the founding leader, evaluated Dodik's moves as an open provocation and declaration of war, the Bosnian Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Member Sefik Caferovic demanded an urgent increase in armed peacekeeping forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Bosniak and Croatian politicians called on the Bosnian judiciary to act against Dodik's challenges that struck a blow to the unity and integrity of Bosnia.