VUČIĆ: I WILL TALK ABOUT REPUBLIKA SRPSKA WITH AMERICAN OFFICIALS

BELGRADE, MAY 1 /SRNA/ - Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said today in Miami that during his visit to the United States, he will speak with American officials about Republika Srpska and the persecution of its leaders.

Vučić pointed out that a person cannot be prosecuted for expressing an opinion, as Sarajevo is doing in the case of Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik, Speaker of the National Assembly Nenad Stevandić, and Prime Minister Radovan Višković. "They cannot be prosecuted simply because they disagree with someone imposed from the outside. That doesn't exist anywhere - not even in a banana republic," Vučić told Pink Television. Vučić admitted that he had made a mistake by not speaking earlier about Sarajevo's role and the involvement of certain individuals who had stayed in BiH during the war in the attacks on the U.S. in 2001. "People from Republika Srpska used that narrative because the Americans are interested in this. I was wrong not to speak about it earlier. But of course, I will always stand up for Republika Srpska and our people there," Vučić said. He added that in doing so, he would always respect the principles of international law, and that Serbia respects the territorial integrity of BiH - but also the integrity of Republika Srpska within BiH, including the jurisdictions and prerogatives of authority granted to it under the Dayton Peace Agreement. Vučić said that he discussed Republika Srpska with former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani yesterday and spoke on the topic in interviews with American networks.