Moscow – Sputnik. In April, the German Foreign Ministry announced that Germany and Austria imposed a ban on the entry of three politicians from the Republika Srpska, the Serb-majority entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina, whom the two countries accuse of supporting the Serbian Deputy Prime Minister. In February, the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Sarajevo convicted the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, for non-compliance with the decisions of the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Christian Schmidt, and sentenced him in absentia to one year in prison, barring him from holding any public office for six years. On August 12, the court in Sarajevo approved Dodik’s request to replace the one-year prison sentence with a fine. In early August, the Central Election Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina decided to annul Dodik’s mandate. The Electoral Commission set a date for early elections to choose the President of Republika Srpska on November 23. In late August, Dodik stated that neither he nor members of his ruling party, the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats, would participate in the elections. Bosnia and Herzegovina declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1992, leading to a war involving Bosnian Muslims, Serbs, and Croats, which lasted until 1995. With international community involvement, the Dayton Peace Agreement was signed, forming three entities: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Republika Srpska, and the Brčko District. The country is headed by a tripartite presidency consisting of one representative from each of the Serbs, Croats, and Bosniaks.
