Reaction from Džaferović's Cabinet: Dodik Never Gave Consent for BiH Armed Forces to Extinguish Fires

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - The Cabinet of the Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina responded today to claims made by Presidency member Milorad Dodik regarding decision-making on the use of BiH Armed Forces resources in firefighting cases.

"The Presidency of BiH held 24 regular sessions during this term, which were attended by members of the Presidency of BiH, while the 25th session is scheduled for March 31, 2022. At the same time, 150 emergency sessions were held, of which 8 were with the physical presence of Presidency members and 142 by telephone. At emergency telephone sessions, decisions were made on the use of BiH Armed Forces for firefighting based on requests from local civilian authorities. Regarding current requests for firefighting, the Chairman of the Presidency of BiH, following the same procedure as in the previous 142 sessions, immediately upon receiving the request, sought consent from Presidency members via email on three occasions for the use of BiH Armed Forces resources for firefighting.

Each time, consent was given by the Chairman of the Presidency of BiH, Šefik Džaferović, and Presidency member Željko Komšić, while Presidency member Milorad Dodik never gave his consent.

Additionally, we note that during the past year, several emergency sessions were held with the physical presence of Presidency members, at which the use of BiH Armed Forces resources for firefighting was considered. Presidency member Dodik did not attend any of those sessions nor gave his consent, which prevented the approval of the use of BiH Armed Forces resources to assist local civilian authorities and the population.

Therefore, we once again call on Presidency member Dodik to immediately give his consent for the use of BiH Armed Forces helicopters to assist in firefighting," the statement said.