VUČIĆ: SERBIA NOT ACCEPTING BiH COURT’S JUDGMENT AND WILL SUPPORT SRPSKA AND ITS LEGITIMATE REPRESENTATIVES

BELGRADE, AUGUST 2 /SRNA/ – Serbia’sn President Aleksandar Vučić stated that Serbia does not accept the second-instance judgment of the Court of BiH against the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, describing it as a decision aimed against Srpska and the Serb people in general, noting that Serbia will use all diplomatic and legal means to support Republika Srpska and its legal and legitimate representatives.

In an address following a session of the National Security Council, Vučić said that the BiH Court’s decision is anything but democratic and goes against general legal principles. He stated that he had spoken with two world leaders who, as he said, warned him on how Serbia’s behaviour and decision should be. "I told them I understood very well, but that Serbia is a sovereign country and makes its own decisions accordingly," Vučić said. Vučić stated that the National Security Council of Serbia adopted conclusions strongly condemning the Court’s decision as undemocratic, anti-civilizational, immoral, deeply unlawful, and contrary to fundamental democratic principles and values from freedom of expression to the respect for the people's electoral will, sovereignty, and legitimacy of national decisions. The conclusions read by Vučić say that such acts violate the constitutional order of BiH and Republika Srpska as established by the Dayton Peace Agreement, undermine stability and trust in institutions, as well as democratic character of internal affairs, as the issue of respect for democratically expressed will of the Srpska citizens in electing its leadership is challenged. The Council concluded that the Court’s decisions are in conflict with the constitutional structure of BiH based on the Dayton Peace Agreement, and represent a serious political blow to the Serb people in BiH and to the Agreement itself. "It is also a security-destabilizing factor. Therefore, Serbia does not accept the mentioned decision of the BiH Court," Vučić stated. The National Security Council noted that the political and security situation in the region has been seriously disturbed, with a trend of further deterioration and provocation of interethnic conflict directly aimed at the Serb people, calling on all regional politician to remain calm and to assess the situation rationally. "As a signatory and guarantor of the Dayton Peace Agreement, Serbia will continue to insist on its full implementation and will reject any practice of imposing decisions outside international law," Vučić said. He added that the Council confirms that the primary goal of Serbia’s diplomatic and legal activities will be the preservation of Republika Srpska, in accordance with the Dayton Peace Agreement, through a strong and continuous campaign in international organisations and among key partners. "Serbia will consistently follow the following principles in its actions — it will oppose the unitarization of BiH, advocate for the preservation of BiH’s territorial integrity along with full respect for Republika Srpska’s competences and territorial integrity, and oppose any imposed reorganisation of BiH’s internal structure, including repressive measures against democratic representatives," Vučić stated. He has emphasized that Serbia will stand by Republika Srpska, international law, and justice, and declared that regional stability is a vital national interest of Serbia. Vučić underlined that the text of the conclusion is a binding act for all competent state authorities in Serbia.