HELEZ’S STATEMENT REQUIRES ADDITIONAL CLARIFICATION FROM TURKEY

BANJA LUKA, JULY 28 /SRNA/ – Srpska President Milorad Dodik states that Defence Minister in the Council of Ministers Zukan Helez’s statement on the BiH Armed Forces soon being equipped with anti-aircraft and anti-tank systems from Turkey raises a number of serious questions requiring further clarification from Ankara- whether such Muslim minister’s statement truly reflects official Turkish policy or whether it stems from private arrangements made outside of BiH’s institutional framework.

“It is concerning that Muslim Minister Helez publicly behaves as a representative of one side and acts without the consent of the relevant institutions,” Dodik stated. He emphasizes that the BiH Presidency, which is the competent authority, has not made any decision on such procurement, noting that such decisions must be made by consensus only, in no other manner, reads a statement from the Office of the Republika Srpska president. He further stressed that it is even more dangerous if this procurement is being handled through donations, as this implies that agreements between the Muslim minister and Turkey are being carried out without public insight, even though weapons are neither food nor medicine to be delivered and donated as humanitarian aid. “Once again, it has been proven that Helez is acting as a Muslim agent, who recently established close ties with Iran and negotiated military cooperation in the defence industry. At this point, we have every right to demand a clear and unequivocal explanation from Turkey - whether Helez’s statements indeed represent official Turkish policy or whether they are private arrangements made outside BiH’s institutional framework,” said Dodik. He emphasizes that Republika Srpska does not want to lose the remaining trust it has in Turkey, but if such practices continue, that outcome will be inevitable. He added that maintaining stability and respecting the Constitution must be the foundation of all international cooperation in BiH. “Republika Srpska believes that the demilitarization process is the best framework for the security of BiH, while militarization poses a risk to its stability,” Dodik concluded.