DODIK CONGRATULATES TRUMP ON INDEPENDENCE DAY: SERBS HAVE ALWAYS VALUED AMERICA’S FREEDOM

BANJA LUKA, JULY 3 /SRNA/ - Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik sent a congratulatory message to US President Donald Trump on the occasion of US Independence Day, July 4, stressing that Serbs living across the Western Balkans have always valued the freedom, strength, and independence of the United States, as well as the assistance it has provided, and that this friendship should not be forgotten.

Reminding that July 4 marks 250 years since the adoption of the US Declaration of Independence, Dodik pointed to the historical significance and lasting legacy of the founding document of the United States. He said that its principles, and the extent to which it was grounded in Christian teaching and the Christian understanding of the human person, have become an integral part of the American understanding of freedom and moral order, and have contributed to shaping the sense of the US mission in the world. "Your country has, since that day in 1776 when members of the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, come a long and historic way," Dodik said. All achievements, the message states, which the United States has accomplished from that important day to the present and which have left a mark across the world, deserve sincere congratulations. "Mr President, as you know, the American and Serbian peoples have nurtured friendship for more than a century. In that period, which has had its ups and downs, Serbs living across the Western Balkans have always valued the freedom, strength, and independence of the United States, as well as the assistance it has provided. Let us not forget this exceptional and wonderful friendship," Dodik said in the congratulatory message addressed to the US president. Extending his best wishes to President Trump, his family, and the people of the United States, Dodik expressed deep respect and extended his sincere congratulations on the occasion of the most important American holiday. US Independence Day is a federal holiday marking the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, which formally established the independence of the American colonies from British rule.