VIDEO Thesis swap directed by Konaković: The Troika serves, Dodik rules, SDA is to blame!?

Written by: Amina Čorbo-Zećo

The statement by Elmedin Konaković, Minister of Foreign Affairs of BiH and one of the leaders of the "Troika", in which he suggests that Bakir Izetbegović is closer to Milorad Dodik than the Troika itself, is nothing more than an attempt to divert attention and responsibility.

Konaković still blames the SDA and Bakir Izetbegović for the current crisis, not a word about the HDZ. Statement for RTV HB below pic.twitter.com/9BHw46IgZT

— Patria (@AgencijaPatria) May 27, 2025

Delivered from the podium of RTV HB, a media outlet close to the HDZ, and carefully crafted to satisfy that audience, Konaković avoids mentioning the essential political symbiosis that has for years formed the basis of the blockade and dismantling of the state: the alliance of Milorad Dodik and Dragan Čović.

However, what Konaković skillfully omits is the key fact that it was precisely the parties of the Troika (NiP, SDP and Naša stranka), with the technical support of part of the international community, that enabled the formation of a government in which Milorad Dodik gained almost complete control over key state institutions.

Dodik has repeatedly stated publicly that "he chose the Troika as the contractors," which, no matter how provocative it sounds, unfortunately reflects the real balance of power.

Under the auspices of the government in which the Troika participates, the SNSD and HDZ have taken over the key pillars of state power: the Council of Ministers of BiH, with the most important portfolios under the direct control of the SNSD and HDZ.

Agencies and directorates, especially those managing finances, communications, and the judiciary, levers that enable long-term control of the system, often outside democratic oversight.

The parliamentary majority, with which Dodik and Čović can effectively block any law or reform that does not go their way.

As a result, Dodik today pursues a policy of open attack on the statehood of BiH, while the Troika strives to maintain the narrative of the "European path" as political cover for the lack of substantive reforms and the erosion of state mechanisms.

Dodik has not even tried to hide his satisfaction with the new partnership. In numerous statements, he clearly emphasizes that the Troika does not represent an obstacle for him, but rather "understands his needs," and openly admits that "the SDP is a smaller problem for him than the SDA," because the SDA, at least nominally, does not agree to the dismantling of the state and openly opposes his separatist agendas.

That is why Konaković's claim that the SDA is closer to Dodik seems like a desperate attempt to obscure the reality in which it was precisely his political structure, the Troika, that enabled Dodik's institutional strengthening after the 2022 elections.

One of the main narratives on which the Troika built its government was a broad political-media campaign to criminalize the SDA. This campaign, partly with the help of foreign embassies and certain NGO structures, managed to create the perception that the removal of the SDA was a "necessary cleansing." However, the real result of that "cleansing" is that the SNSD and HDZ are now stronger than ever in institutional terms.

The Troika has been reduced to a political decoration, an apparatus for damage control and public relations.

Citizens have been deceived by "pro-European" labels, while reform progress stagnates and the sovereignty of the state crumbles from within.

When Elmedin Konaković says that the SDA "dreams of armchairs," he conceals the fact that it was precisely he and his political platform who ceded all key armchairs and mechanisms of power to Dodik and Čović. While they carry out the quiet destruction of the state, the Troika continues to tell fairy tales about "new politics," feigning European legitimacy, while essentially acting as obedient logistics for other people's interests.