State Department declares 13 individuals and one entity "non grata" in Bosnia

2025-01-18 08:41:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

State Department declares 13 individuals and one entity "non grata" in

The United States on Friday declared eight individuals persona non grata for organizing and implementing a plan to celebrate the Day of Republika Srpska in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the celebration of which has been declared unconstitutional by the country's institutions and condemned by Western countries.

The US State Department referred in its announcement to the celebration of this day in 2024 and said that the individuals involved in the decision "supported the secessionist agenda" of the President of the Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik.

Republika Srpska in Bosnia celebrated the same day last week with a parade in the center of Banja Luka, the capital of this entity, despite calls from the United States and the European Union against such a celebration.

According to the State Department, the January 9 celebrations, which commemorate the day in 1992 when Bosnian Serbs declared the creation of their own state that sparked a bloody four-year war with over 100,000 victims, “are emblematic of Dodik’s long-standing efforts to undermine the Dayton Peace Agreement, a pillar of regional peace and security.”

"The actions of these individuals threaten the territorial integrity, peace, and stability of Bosnia and Herzegovina by undermining the framework of the (Peace Agreement) of Dejon and its institutions, including the Constitutional Court and the authority of the High Representative," the State Department statement said.

The State Department said seven of Friday's nominees "helped plan and organize the celebration in 2025."

The State Department also announced that it has designated five other individuals and one entity as part of the financial network of Mr. Dodik and his family.

“Dodik has exploited his official position to amass personal wealth through companies associated with him and his family to the detriment of the people of Bosnia,” the State Department said in a statement. According to it, Dodik and his family “often rely on a network of trusted associates to conceal their involvement and evade U.S. sanctions.”

The war in Bosnia ended in the fall of 1995 with a peace agreement brokered by the United States. The Dayton Agreement led to the creation of a Serb and a Bosnian-Croat entity in Bosnia, held together by weak central institutions.

Bosnian Serbs, however, aim to gain as much independence as possible. Pro-Russian nationalist leader Milorad Dodik has openly called for secession from Bosnia, defying US and British sanctions against him over his political approach.

Friday's decision comes a few days after US President Joe Biden expanded the executive order for the Western Balkans that provides for sanctions on individuals and entities that violate or participate in undermining the agreements that ended the wars in the region or pose threats to its security.