Dodik and Čović No Longer Hide: Openly Pursuing Neighbors' Aggressive Policies

By Amina Čorbo-Zećo

The policies pursued by Milorad Dodik and Dragan Čović have long been recognized as destructive and aggressive towards Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, what makes them even more dangerous is the fact that power centers from Belgrade and Zagreb openly and unreservedly stand behind them.

While this support was once hidden and diplomatically polished, today it manifests publicly, concretely, and often in a way that directly threatens the sovereignty and stability of our country.

There are plenty of examples. This firm Dodik-Čović alliance will be proven once again in the latest instance when HDZ's Davor Pranjić, the Vice-President of Republika Srpska, violated the Constitution of Republika Srpska and the judgment of the Court of BiH. This is because Dodik could not transfer powers to him as he is not temporarily prevented from performing his duties, but rather has had his mandate permanently revoked.

Pranjić could not have taken such a step without his party's consent, and the HDZ does nothing without Zagreb's support. Zagreb, in turn, has stamped its 'enmity' through lobbying against BiH's interests. The disrespect for sovereignty, although they claim it declaratively, is also reflected in the incursions of their officials into parts of BiH where the HDZ governs, whenever they please. And let's not even mention the usurpation of BiH property in Croatia.

Similarly, every threat of secession by Dodik, denial of genocide, and attacks on state institutions receive support from Belgrade, whether through political statements, institutional visits, or economic arrangements. Strategic support is reflected in the 'Serbian World' Declaration and the implementation of its provisions to the detriment of BiH.

Čović's policy of a 'third entity' and the systematic blocking of state processes almost always align with the official positions of Zagreb, which justifies its interference with supposed 'concern for Croats in BiH'.

Lately, these activities have crossed all bounds of decency in international relations, from direct threats by Milorad Dodik and his associates, through Croatia's attempts to impose itself as a tutor of Bosnia and Herzegovina via the European Union, to coordinated actions that challenge the decisions of BiH institutions and impose parallel decision-making mechanisms.

What is concerning is that all of this is happening with the passivity of parts of the international community, and sometimes with their indirect encouragement, and even greater concern is the behavior of the third partner, the so-called Trojka, which seems unwilling to see the Dodik-Čović alliance. For them, Čović is still a desirable and firm partner.

While Belgrade and Zagreb present themselves as guarantors of peace and stability, their protégés in BiH are destroying the foundations of that very state.

Therefore, it is essential today to state openly and clearly that Dodik and Čović are not just pursuing separatist and ethno-nationalist policies; they are pursuing the extended, aggressive policies of Belgrade and Zagreb against Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This is not a matter of 'different political visions', but a matter of defending the state from constant and coordinated attacks from abroad and from within.