U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen has reacted to Milorad Dodik’s visit to Washington, calling for the reinstatement of U.S. sanctions against the former leader of Republika Srpska.
Shaheen stated that the Trump administration should be ashamed of its decision to lift sanctions against Dodik last October. According to her, Dodik continues to use separatist rhetoric and undermine the integrity of the Dayton Peace Agreement, which directly contradicts the administration’s justification for removing him and his associates from the sanctions list.
The senator emphasized that Dodik’s visit to Washington demonstrates that he is not prioritizing the interests of all citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but rather focusing on his own political agenda. She urged the administration to urgently reinstate sanctions, in line with the mandatory measures included in the latest National Defense Authorization Act.
The United States initially imposed sanctions on Dodik in 2017, citing actions considered a threat to the stability of Bosnia and Herzegovina and a violation of the Dayton Peace Agreement. However, on October 29, 2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) decided to remove sanctions against Dodik and several other individuals from Republika Srpska.
