Ministers from Republika Srpska (RS) will not attend the meeting of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) on Thursday, December 5, due to the visit of Kosovo Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, to Sarajevo, announced Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers, Stasha Kosharac, reports Srna news agency.
He said the decision was made after consultations in his cabinet, which included the Minister of Finance in the Council of Ministers, Srxhan Amixhiq, Deputy Minister of Defense, Aleksandar Goganoviq, Deputy Minister of Civil Affairs, Marijana Mujiq, and Deputy Minister of Communications and Transport, Ognjen Janjiq.
Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti is scheduled to arrive in Sarajevo on Thursday evening, confirmed a day earlier by Adil Kullenoviq, the president of the non-governmental organization Independent Intellectuals’ Association “Krug 99.”
Kullenoviq stated that Kurti is coming to attend a session organized by this association the following day in Sarajevo, where he will deliver an opening speech.
“The session will discuss regional relations,” Kullenoviq told Radio Free Europe.
Milorad Dodik, the president of the Bosnian Serb entity in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Republika Srpska, declared that Kurti’s visit to Sarajevo would complicate the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“BiH has not recognized Kosovo. We will not allow Albanians from that region to enter with identification documents,” said Dodik, according to Srna’s reporting.
Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo have not recognized each other due to the opposition of Republika Srpska, headed by Dodik, who has pro-Russian inclinations and is sanctioned by the United States for undermining the Dayton Agreement.
Kurti had declared in mid-October, during the Berlin Process summit, that Kosovo would allow citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina to enter with identification documents starting January 1, 2025.
The agreement to lift the visa regime between Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina and allow citizens of both countries to travel without visas has not yet been ratified in the BiH Parliament.
It is being blocked by representatives of Republika Srpska, led by the Independent Social Democrats of Milorad Dodik.
