The President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, has stated that Bosniak politicians today continue to uphold the idea of Alija Izetbegović’s Bosnia and Herzegovina. However, he emphasized that his duty as President of Republika Srpska is to ensure that a unitary Bosnia and Herzegovina never emerges in the future.

“The idea of Alija Izetbegović’s Bosnia and Herzegovina is one where Muslims dominate, and where Republika Srpska does not exist. Elmedin Konaković, Nermin Nikšić, Zlatko Lagumdžija, Haris Silajdžić, Bakir Izetbegović all live by this vision. There is not a single Bosniak politician, regardless of their party affiliation, who does not support Alija’s idea of BiH,” Dodik stated.

According to Dodik, this idea was outlined in the Islamic Declaration, which later became the official program of the Party of Democratic Action (SDA).

Dodik also recalled that during the signing of the Dayton Agreement, Alija Izetbegović declared that the idea of Bosnia and Herzegovina had survived and admitted that he had fought for it, adding that this was the reason for the war.

He noted that at the time, he was a member of parliament and recalled how Serbs demanded that the separation of BiH be removed from the agenda, but Izetbegović refused, thereby violating the constitution.

“They are constantly engaged in deception and lies,” Dodik told reporters from SRNA, RTRS, and ATV.

He further added that while the issue may have been underestimated in Republika Srpska, as a politician and president, he had to address it.

“We must not allow ourselves to wake up one day in a unitary BiH without Republika Srpska. We can only exist in a Bosnia and Herzegovina where our constitutional position and Dayton status are respected, but nothing else,” he reaffirmed.

Finally, Dodik stated that Republika Srpska has proven itself capable of self-governance even within the difficult framework of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He claimed that this was the main reason why the unconstitutional Court and Prosecutor’s Office of BiH were being used to target key figures in Srpska in an attempt to weaken it.