DODIK: UPCOMING HIGH-LEVEL VISITS FROM RUSSIA AND USA TO REPUBLIKA SRPSKA

BANJA LUKA, MARCH 28 /SRNA/ – SNSD leader Milorad Dodik has stated today that an important delegation from the Russian Federation will soon visit Republika Srpska to conduct, together with local representatives, an assessment of the construction of the Russian-Serbian church in Banja Luka.

During the visit to the Parish House at the Holy Trinity Church and talks with His Eminence Metropolitan Jefrem of Banja Luka, Dodik said that the Church of the Transfiguration has been structurally roofed, adding that there will be much to show to Russian partners. “We want to present everything we have accomplished. I would like to thank Metropolitan Jefrem for his approach to the construction. I believe this has been carried out in the best and highest-quality manner,” Dodik told reporters in Banja Luka, noting that interior decoration of the church will follow. He said that construction of the church has been ongoing for several years, but emphasized that it will be completed within a record timeframe and without interruptions. According to Dodik, one of the topics of today's meeting was preparations for marking the Day of the Breakout of Jasenovac camp inmates in Donja Gradina, which will be commemorated this year on April 19, seven days after Easter. Dodik announced that significant visits are expected for the event, highlighting in particular the arrival of a high-level delegation from the United States, led by the US president Donald Trump's special envoy for antisemitism. “We also expect other important figures. The Serbian and Jewish peoples suffered together, and we should commemorate every form of suffering and pay tribute to all victims. Gradina is the place where murdered Serbs and Jews are buried, as well as Roma and antifascists,” Dodik stated.