BUDAPEST, September 4. /TASS/. Brussels is repeating the same mistake in the Balkans as in Ukraine, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto said.

"Western European politicians apply the same failed attitude in the Western Balkans as in the case of Ukraine: lecturing, threats, sanctions. Hungary respects the sovereignty of these countries and their elected leaders," he wrote on the X social media platform following a meeting with President Milorad Dodik of Republika Srpska (one of the two constituent entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina).

As per the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement, Bosnia and Herzegovina is made up of two primary entities: the Muslim-Croatian Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (51% of the territory) and Republika Srpska (49% of the territory), as well as the Brcko District. Three main peoples – the Bosniaks (Slavs converted to Islam), the Serbs (Orthodox) and the Croatians (Catholics) – are represented proportionally in the government.

The country is essentially governed through a high representative (a post created by the 1995 Dayton Agreement), who is appointed by the steering committee of the Peace Implementation Council after approval by the UN Security Council. However, in May 2021, the ambassadors of the steering committee countries decided to appoint Christian Schmidt as the new high representative without approval from the UN Security Council. The Republika Srpska leadership, Russia and China do not recognize Schmidt’s legitimacy.

Earlier, the Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina ended Dodik’s mandate as president of Republika Srpska due to his conviction and ordered an early election to be held on November 23. Prior to that, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Appeals Panel of the Court upheld the first-instance verdict, sentencing Dodik to six years in prison and banning him from engaging in political activities for refusing to comply with the decisions of High Representative Christian Schmidt. In response, Dodik announced plans to hold a referendum on confidence in him as president in Republika Srpska on October 25.