MOSCOW, May 13. /TASS/. Republika Srpska (one of the two constituent entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina) expects that Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend the consecration ceremony of a Russian-Serb cathedral in the city of Banja Luka, Milorad Dodik, chairman of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats in Republika Srpska, told TASS in an interview.

When asked who was expected to attend the ceremony, he said: "We expect Vladimir Putin to visit."

According to Dodik, construction works are almost over, and "all that remains to be done is to paint the interior." "We will do it together with our Russian friends," the politician noted. He pointed out that "the church is based on a design of a temple that was once part of the Kremlin" and that the construction project had been provided by the Russian Orthodox Church.

Dodik emphasized that "the church does not only include a place of worship but also an area of 6,000 square meters designed to host various Russian-Serb events."

Alexey Kapustin, director of the Center of Classical and Traditional Architecture at Moscow Architectural Institute who developed the construction project, told TASS earlier that the Banja Luka cathedral was dedicated to the Holy Royal Martyrs - the family of Russia’s last Emperor Nicholas II. The church will be the highest religious building in the city.