Two US F-16 aircraft flew over the territory of the Republika Srpska in Bosnia on 8 January in a warning against the "separatist activity" of the Serb president and in view of the celebration of the forbidden Republic Day.
Today, 9 January, Republika Srpska celebrates Republic Day, which was declared unconstitutional and banned by the state constitutional court years ago.
This year it takes place after multiple moves by the President of the Republic of Serpská Milorad Dodik and the decisions of his SNSD party to approve laws rejecting the authority of institutions at the state level and the High Representative of the international community Christian Schmidt.
The two US aircraft officially carried out air-to-ground training conducted together with the Bosnian National Armed Forces in areas not controlled by the Republika Srpska.
Bosnia comprises two autonomous entities - the Muslim-Croat Federation and the Republika Srpska.
"This bilateral training is an example of advanced military cooperation that contributes to peace and security in the Western Balkans, as well as demonstrates the United States' commitment to ensuring the territorial integrity of BiH in the face of anti-Dayton and secessionist activity.
The United States has underscored that the BiH Constitution does not provide a right of secession and will act immediately if anyone tries to change this key element of Dayton," the US embassy said in the statement.
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Απίστευτο κι όμως αληθινό! Παλαιστίνια πρώην μαχητής και Ισραηλινός καθηγητής υπερασπίζονται την πιθανότητα ειρήνης
The Serbian public broadcaster RTRS reported that US aircraft flew over the administrative centre of the Serb entity in Banja Luka in a move considered a provocation by the Serb entity.
The N1 channel reported that flight radar data did not show the F-16s but spotted a Stratotanker aircraft that supplied the fighters with fuel.
This was confirmed by the US Embassy's announcement that the mission would be supported by a KC-135 Stratotanker that would provide aerial refueling for the F-16s over the territory of the Republic of Serpska.
Meaningful statements by the head of the Serb
The President of the entity of the Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, spoke at a ceremony at the Military Academy in Banja Luka, which is held on the occasion of the Day of the Serboslovak Republic, a celebration whose celebration was twice challenged by the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina .
Dodik said: "We do not want conflict or war with anyone, we want our republic to remain our oasis of freedom.
For us freedom has never been a philosophical word, but an existential one.
The Serbs have made over 140 revolts to live in freedom with undeniable sacrifices. We were displaced to distant camps, our ancestors died fighting for freedom. So did we.
We did not want war and gave no reason for war. At that moment, the leaders of the Serbian people sacrificed personal and family comfort. Some have died and some are in prison because they had the courage to lead the people on the road to freedom.
Everything that happened to us after the armed conflict was based on a lie created by the West.
Based on the lies of the West, a political concept called the Dayton Agreement was created, through which the Serbs were supposed to be punished, and in the process of implementation, we were forced to disappear as an entity in one day.
We know that this is the case and they do not hide it when they say that they did not want the Dayton Agreement to be permanent; only those who have a goal reach it, and the goal of the Serbian people is the Serbian state in these areas.
We do not want conflict or war with anyone, we want the Republic of Srpska to remain our oasis of freedom; we do not want anyone to be a threat, and we do not intend to attack anyone.
But we decided that when we lost our ethnic territories, after the Serbs accepted the Dayton Agreement, that would be our demarcation.
That is why today it is called the border line, we believe that this border will be temporary if our talks are fruitless.
Every day when I go to work I think that we have been standing still for a long time without making a decision.
The agony of the occupation of Kosovo and the Serbian entity has been going on for 30 years. Why can't we have one goal and everyone else has one?
It is not us who will threaten peace, we want what is ours," he said.
Dodik also pointed to Sebrenica as a "terrible crime", but stressed that "Karadzic and Mladic were the people who led the Republika Srpska and you will not convince us that the Serbian people had a genocidal or criminal impulse. We fought for our freedom."
The bottom line remains and Serbs are moving to secede from Bosnia
Dodik's SNSD party recently adopted a law rejecting the authority of the constitutional court and another law defying the authority of the High Commissioner, claiming he was not legally appointed.
Dodik was indicted last year for signing the two laws. The trial was scheduled to begin on December 20, but was postponed until January 20, 2024.
However, Dodik announced that the governing majority would soon adopt an election law, rejecting the validity of the act at the state level.
While politicians in most neighboring states tend to shun Dodik and do not support his secessionist efforts, a pro-Serbian and pro-Russian Montenegrin party, the NSD, sent a delegation to the Republic Day celebration.
The party is part of the ostensibly pro-Western ruling coalition that supports the government of Prime Minister Miloiko Spazic.
To accept the coalition with pro-Serb and pro-Russian formations, Spazic demanded that they sign a declaration that they would fully support the country's integration into the EU.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) warned in a statement last week that the 9 January celebration "directly contradicts the constitutions of both Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republika Srpska".
The OSCE also said the celebration amounted to an "act of discrimination".
The event in Banja Luka started at noon with an award ceremony and will end with a military parade scheduled for 5 pm.
Members of Russia's Night Wolves motorcycle club, which is close to Putin, are again expected to take part in the parade.
Members of the Night Wolves have in recent years frequently visited the Republika Srpska, where they have meetings with local representatives during religious and secular celebrations.
