DODIK, ONE OF WESTERN BALKANS' LEADING LEADERS

BELGRADE, FEBRUARY 2 /SRNA/ – The frequent visits of SNSD leader Milorad Dodik to countries friendly toward Republika Srpska only confirm that he is undoubtedly one Western Balkans' leading leaders when it comes to international contacts, analyst Pero Simić assessed.

He has stated that Dodik often stays in Russia and Hungary, he was recently in Israel and has been invited by several US congressmen to attend the National Prayer Breakfast on Thursday, February 5, together with the Serb BiH Presidency member Željka Cvijanović, who has already traveled there. Simić pointed out that it is interesting that some media outlets, such as EuroBlic, for reasons known only to them, attempted to portray the successful visit of Dodik and the Republika Srpska Acting President Ana Trišić-Babić to Israel in a different light, which is evidenced by a front-page article from January 30 with the shamefully inappropriate headline "Insincere Friends". "If Blic journalists followed the statement of Israel’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Gideon Sa'ar, then they certainly could have remembered that `Serbs are sincere friends of the Jewish people and the State of Israel,` as Minister Sa'ar said. However, it is obvious that, for reasons known only to them, they chose to bypass this in presenting information to the public," Simić told Politika. He noted that Sa'ar described his meeting with Dodik and Babić as excellent and thanked them for their friendship and support, emphasizing that Israel will appreciate what Republika Srpska is doing to promote remembrance of the Holocaust in the face of growing antisemitism in Europe and BiH. Simić recalled that, at Dodik's initiative, the Arie Livne Jewish Cultural Centre was opened in Banja Luka in 2014. It was the only such facility built in the Balkans after World War II dedicated to the promotion of Jewish culture, history, and tradition. He added that the Ilona Weiss Synagogue is also located within the Jewish Cultural Centre. Simić stated that during their visit to Israel, Dodik and Trišić-Babić visited the grave of Livne, the former president of the Republika Srpska Trade Representative Office in Israel, after whom the Jewish Centre in Banja Luka was named. He concluded that Republika Srpska - Israel friendship is indisputable and has lasted for years, particularly emphasizing that Dodik was awarded a high honour in the Knesset - the Jabotinsky Award for Freedom, which he dedicated to Republika Srpska and the Serb people, as well as to the late Livne, who spread love between Serbs and Jews, and to Moshe Levy, a hero of Israel who never ceased to show love for the Serbs. Simić also cited in his text a number of Dodik's statements during and after his stay in Israel, including the one that after this visit "nothing will ever be the same for Republika Srpska".