Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Foreign Minister Elmedin Konaković and Defense Minister Zukan Helez have rejected a claim by Republika Srpska leader Milorad Dodik that authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina had unilaterally blocked a flight by the Serbian government’s aircraft.
Speaking to Radio Free Europe, both ministers said that no request had been submitted to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s institutions for authorization of the Serbian government plane to fly over the country.
Konaković said no decision had been made either to approve or block the flight.
“We neither allowed it nor banned it. Nobody approached us with a request. We only received information that Ana Brnabić had canceled the flight to Banja Luka,” Konaković told RFE.
Helez separately confirmed that his ministry had not received a request for authorization.
“I did not receive a request for the Serbian prime minister’s flight,” Helez said.
Their statements came after Dodik, president of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD), claimed on X that a decision had been made to “unilaterally prohibit” Serbian Prime Minister Đuro Macut from flying to Banja Luka.
Serbian PM was expected in Banja Luka
Macut had been scheduled to attend a ceremony in Banja Luka on September 14 ahead of Serbia and Republika Srpska’s observance of Serbian Unity, Freedom and National Flag Day on September 15.
The holiday was established in 2020 by the governments of Serbia and Republika Srpska. The date was chosen to commemorate the breakthrough of the Salonika Front in 1918.
The conflicting accounts have highlighted continuing political tensions between institutions in Sarajevo, the Republika Srpska leadership and Belgrade, with the status of Republika Srpska and its relationship with Serbia remaining a politically sensitive issue in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
