BUDAPEST - Attempts to remove the President of the Republika Srpska (a constituent republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina), Milorad Dodik, from office will once again turn the Balkans into a "powder keg," stated Gergely Gulyás, head of the Hungarian Prime Minister's office. He was reacting to the decision of the Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), which terminated Dodik's powers as the leader of the Bosnian Serbs.

Previously, a court in Bosnia and Herzegovina sentenced Dodik to one year in prison and banned him from political activity for six years for defying a decision by the international community's High Representative, Christian Schmidt. Following the removal of the president's mandate, the election commission decided to hold early elections in the Republika Srpska.

Dodik stated that he does not intend to respect this decision and will appeal against it. "We see that the Balkans, and it is not the first time in history, is turning into a powder keg. The conviction of the President of the Republika Srpska is clearly a destabilizing factor, and we consider the current situation to be absurd. Stability in the Balkans will not be supported by Western intervention, but by its withdrawal from the region. The government considers the president's conviction to be an unprecedented step. The European Union should be interested in the stability of the Balkans," said Gulyás, who is a minister in the Hungarian government.

He added that Dodik visited Budapest on August 5, where he received full support from Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. After meeting with the President of the Republika Srpska, Orbán stated that Hungary will not recognize the decision of BiH regarding Dodik.

Bosnia and Herzegovina is effectively governed through a High Representative of the international community, appointed by the Steering Board of the Council for the Implementation of the Peace Agreement for BiH, after the candidacy is approved by the UN Security Council. In 2021, the ambassadors of the countries on the Steering Board appointed Schmidt as the new High Representative in BiH without the consent of the UN Security Council. The leadership of the Republika Srpska, along with Russia and China, does not recognize Schmidt's legitimacy.

TASS/gnews.cz - GH