Dodik counted on Russian millions, Šarović does not want to give money to compromised authorities

SNSD has launched a series of criticisms against the state Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, Mirko Šarović, after he stated that he will not allow the authorities in RS to spend around 70 million KM, which this BiH entity is supposed to receive from the debt that Russia will pay to Bosnia and Herzegovina, based on the clearing debt, writes Patria.

Minister Šarović stated that "Serb representatives in Sarajevo will determine what the 70 million KM of Russian debt, as well as 200 million KM from the Central Bank, will be used for".

Negotiations on repaying Russia's clearing debt to BiH lasted for eight full years. This is a pre-war debt for work done by Yugoslav companies in the USSR.

The then Prime Minister of the state, Nikola Špirić, discussed this clearing debt with the Russians in 2008, and it was said that BiH's debts for gas consumed during the war would be settled with this debt. The RS rejected this at the time. Then, repayment of the debt through commodity compensation in the form of equipment for railways and machinery for track maintenance and repair was offered. There was talk of machinery worth around 26 million dollars. As a second option, multi-purpose Russian helicopters were offered. These are the much-needed K-32 helicopters that could also be used for firefighting as they can carry five tons of water in one flight.

Finally, at these negotiations, the Russian offer pleasantly surprised the Bosnian negotiators. The Russian Federation wants to settle the debt in cash. This amounts to 215 million marks, which will be divided in a ratio of 33 percent for RS – 72 million KM, and 67 percent or 143 million marks for the Federation.

The authorities in RS welcomed this news with approval. Russian millions would at least slightly alleviate the difficult economic situation in RS, and they are coming at the right time, a few months before the local elections. However, the authorities in Republika Srpska became angry after the state minister Šarović said that they would not be allowed to manage this money. The Government of RS also issued a statement today, in which they accuse Šarović of treason against Republika Srpska.

The State Investigation and Protection Agency of BiH (SIPA) is currently conducting several investigations related to the collapse of two banks in RS, the plunder of state property, as well as a number of other illegal activities by top officials in RS, and the President of RS himself, Milorad Dodik, is also under investigation.

Šarović fears that the millions from Russia, as well as from the Central Bank of BiH, could end up in the private pockets of the ruling coalition in RS, writes Patria.