Dodik: Constitutional Court judges can hang the decision on the 9th of January on a cat's tail

The guest of this evening's edition of Centralni dnevnik with Senad Hadžifejzović on FACE TV was the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, who stated that RS will not respect or implement the decision of the Constitutional Court of BiH, which declared January 9th – the Day of Republika Srpska – unconstitutional.

- The judges can hang the decision on a cat's tail. The National Assembly of Republika Srpska adopted a Declaration according to which we will not accept a change of date. Non-implementation of the Decision is a dissolution of the sovereignty of the Decision made by the Constitutional Court. I am satisfied with the fact that all political parties, NGOs, and citizens are ready not to accept the politically imposed decision of the Constitutional Court. There is only one day when Republika Srpska was founded, and that is January 9th, and you cannot move it to another date. I think some judges who voted for this decision will regret voting for it – Dodik said.

He stated that this decision does not contribute to stability in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

- I think we will remain calm and stable. The good news is that the conflict between Russia and Turkey has not spread to us; I think we need to work together more to fight terrorism. There is a fear among Bosniaks that they will be identified with terrorism; I know many people who have nothing to do with it, and terrorism in Bosnia and Herzegovina is supported by small groups of people – Dodik said.

When asked if he would enter state government, Dodik said that SNSD will not be a substitute for the Alliance for Changes.

- Although some romantic rhetoric is seen in the Federation regarding the coalition of Izetbegović and Radončić, it is possible that something similar will happen with political parties on certain issues. We will not enter state government now; we will enter only after the next general elections in BiH – Dodik said.

Speaking about the referendum on the Court and Prosecutor's Office, he stated that there are procedures that must be followed.

- Currently, that procedure is before the Constitutional Court of Republika Srpska, which is working objectively, following an appeal from the Bosniak people. I hope the referendum will be held sometime in March if the procedures allow us – Dodik said, emphasizing that Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić has no command relationship with us.

- We have been warned that calling a referendum could bring certain problems, but now we have a new situation. Now we have one where Bakir Izetbegović slanders me, and he does so in contact with foreign politicians. Bakir Izetbegović is a politician, and I wish we could agree with him. When it comes to the Constitutional Court of BiH, I must say that decisions are made with the votes of two Bosniaks, former high-ranking members of SDA, and with the votes of three foreigners. In this way, numerous changes to the BiH Constitution have been implemented – says Dodik.

On BiH's entry into NATO and the path to the EU, Dodik reiterated his earlier stance.

- There are no security parameters that would tell us that entering NATO will make us safer than we are today. When it comes to entering NATO, we have no problems with moving forward; we have a situation where the issue of military property must be resolved for the MAP to be activated for BiH. This issue can be resolved by an agreement between the entities and a law at the state level.

I am not against the path to Europe, but I am no longer sure that it is so good, because Europe has not yet solved its own problems. However, I am not against the path to Europe; I want Republika Srpska to be visible and to strengthen its autonomy in Europe – says the president of SNSD.