PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR Milorad Dodik - American Pet and Russian Terrier!

By: Rasim Belko

Last year was one of the worst in the post-Dayton life of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Let's hope the year ahead is not similar or worse, and we can be happy and satisfied.

I don't believe anyone who followed political events in Bosnia and Herzegovina last year has any doubt that Milorad Dodik is the absolute personality who marked 2025. Therefore, we can legitimately declare him the most problematic personality of 2025.

However, however strange it may seem after everything, the cause of a chaotic year in which the state was threatened from all sides is not solely Dodik and his policies. Because, it should be reminded that just after the New Year's holidays, the cadres of the political project Trojka, unhappy with the local election results, decided to try to remove Milorad Dodik from state power using erasers and bulldozers.

They didn't know, because they weren't up to it, that Dodik is the anchor to which all of Greater Serbian and Russian policy plans in our country are attached. At that moment, it was undoubtedly so, perhaps it changed by the end of '25, perhaps not, we'll see.

Challenged to a duel, Dodik responded strategically and anti-state very quickly. Previously, he tightened party flags with Dragan Čović, the leader of the HDZ, who had the task of guarding Dodik's cadres at the state level.

Free from problems in the background, Milorad Dodik launched a full assault against Bosnia and Herzegovina. By the end of February, deputies in the National Assembly of Republika Srpska (NSRS), gathered in a coalition around Dodik's SNSD, passed laws that represented a blow to the constitutional order of BiH. "I am closing the eighteenth special session. We will soon see if it was historic," said the Speaker of the NSRS, Nenad Stevandić, in his closing remarks.

It wasn't historic in the way Stevandić wanted, but it certainly caused tectonic shifts and problems in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Months followed in which Dodik became enraged. Following the unconstitutional decisions of the NSRS and under the pressure of court proceedings, Milorad Dodik played the role of a renegade cowboy. On the other hand, we saw the complete inferiority of the state and its police apparatus, which must not be repeated if we do not want to face wartime horrors again and endanger the state.

Dodik, under indictment and warrant, flew and drove wherever he wanted, and his and Čović's cadres in the police structures covered his back. At that time, even America retreated, although its diplomat actually largely stirred up everything we experienced in 2025. He made a Trojka out of political preemies, who couldn't cope with Dodik and Čović, and then he pressured Dodik without a concrete plan of what and how to deal with him. America had to retreat to see more clearly and try to understand where Bosnia and Herzegovina was heading.

In the indecisiveness of the Americans, Russia saw its chance, so it stood by Dodik again, but also openly threatened Bosnia and Herzegovina. Aleksandar Vučić also chimed in, in between the problems he had in Serbia. There was also the support of Viktor Orbán, to whom Dodik often flew, and even Hungarian forces were in Banja Luka.

At that time, the possibility of new conflicts in our country was visible to the naked eye, and the incapable European Union could not make a single sensible and successful move without America. However, those in Sarajevo also didn't know how or what to do in the face of Milorad Dodik's onslaught. The opposition shouted "arrest him", the government "we won't arrest".

And then the boiling summer reached its peak, and the old gambler of our lives, under the veil of secrecy and intelligence entanglements, came to court in July 2025. The very same one whose actions in RS he had declared null and void. It was an event that signaled the beginning of the unraveling of the chaos called Milorad Dodik. It became clear to everyone that he had achieved something, as soon as he agreed to come. At the same time, it became clear that America had returned, Britain had joined, and the bargaining had begun.

Dodik was convicted in August. He received as much prison time as he could pay off, i.e., one year. And he paid it off. He is banned from political activity for six years. But, only on paper. Because, from the verdict until today, Dodik remains the strongest political figure in our country. The one they negotiate with.

This was followed by the revocation of the mandate of the President of RS, the appointment of an acting president, early elections, and the man who set us back ten years in one year was cleansed as if he had just appeared. Washington helped with the cleansing by lifting sanctions on Dodik and everyone around him.

As if he had committed a criminal offense for the first time in his life, like breaking a shop window, the judge turned a blind eye. For two decades, Dodik has been terrorizing us, in 2025 he brought us to the brink of war and chaos, but who cares – he made a deal with the big sheriffs and remained in his position.

But he hasn't changed, nor could anyone have expected him to become some benefactor leading us towards integration into Western trends. Of course, the political kindergarten of Trojka believed in that when they handed him the levers with which he could slow down and endanger Bosnia and Herzegovina. But, they are anyway a supporting role in the movie "Year 2025".

However, Dodik still showed what a master he is, as he received praise from the entire West for repealing laws that the Constitutional Court of BiH had long since annulled. Because, even this West is not a bit better towards Bosnia and Herzegovina than Dodik himself.

And here we are in 2026. Dodik is still at the head of SNSD, a position from which he will decide our lives until the October elections. It remains to be seen whether he will continue the parallel game of Russian terrier and Western pet. But, I don't expect him to try to create the chaos he produced last year. However, considering his political opus, with Dodik, the unexpected is the only thing to expect!

And Čović will continue to cover his back!