Dodik says he'd "put Serbian army on alert"

Republic of Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik told weekly NIN he would put Serbian army on alert and do other things that would demonstrate the state’s power. Commenting on Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic’s statement on the use of force in fight for protection of Serbia’s territorial integrity, Dodik said he did not believe that Nikolic would deploy the army to Kosovo but that he would act differently if he was a Serbian president, Sarajevo-based daily Dnevni avaz writes. Dodik says he'd "put Serbian army on alert" “I would heighten the army’s alert level and I would do certain things to manifest the state’s power and I would not just sit there and wait for somebody to call me from Brussels or the U.S. and request my inaction. Somebody would maybe wish to negotiate northern Kosovo precisely because of that,” he was quoted as saying. When asked whether he would support the use of force in combat for protection of Serbia’s territorial integrity, the RS president said: “Why does the army exist if not to defend the state?” “When it comes to Kosovo, it is on a political field and only a crazy person would send the army to Kosovo now, nobody is an adventurist and I do not believe that Nikolic meant that. I think he is rational in this respect,” Dodik pointed out. He said he believed in the special ties between Serbia and the RS and claimed that he was not interfering with Serbia’s internal relations. The RS president stressed, however, that he would not be comfortable cooperating with the Serbian government if Cedomir Jovanovic’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) was a part of it. “What business would we have with ministers from Serbia walking around, telling bad things about the RS? Of course it would undermine our relations. If you think we are ready to say ‘Ok, we should be understanding, it could not have been any different, let Ceda (Cedomir Jovanovic) walk around Europe saying bad things about Banja Luka and good things about Sarajevo’, of course we would not allow it,” he was quoted as saying. Dodik noted that he could not choose the Serbian government because this was up to the political parties in Serbia, adding that this was something entirely different from the support he gave to Democratic Party (DS) leader Boris Tadic in the presidential election. “I do not get to be satisfied or dissatisfied with the results of the elections in Serbia, I am interested in a stable, strong and even stronger Serbia. I can have personal impressions but I respect the decision of the majority of Serbia’s citizens. And I expect that the government will be formed soon,” he concluded. Milorad Dodik (FoNet, file) Dnevni avaz

Dodik says he'd "put Serbian army on alert"

“I would heighten the army’s alert level and I would do certain things to manifest the state’s power and I would not just sit there and wait for somebody to call me from Brussels or the U.S. and request my inaction. Somebody would maybe wish to negotiate northern Kosovo precisely because of that,” he was quoted as saying.

When asked whether he would support the use of force in combat for protection of Serbia’s territorial integrity, the RS president said:

“Why does the army exist if not to defend the state?”

“When it comes to Kosovo, it is on a political field and only a crazy person would send the army to Kosovo now, nobody is an adventurist and I do not believe that Nikolić meant that. I think he is rational in this respect,” Dodik pointed out.

He said he believed in the special ties between Serbia and the RS and claimed that he was not interfering with Serbia’s internal relations.

The RS president stressed, however, that he would not be comfortable cooperating with the Serbian government if Čedomir Jovanović’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) was a part of it.

“What business would we have with ministers from Serbia walking around, telling bad things about the RS? Of course it would undermine our relations. If you think we are ready to say ‘Ok, we should be understanding, it could not have been any different, let Čeda (Čedomir Jovanović) walk around Europe saying bad things about Banja Luka and good things about Sarajevo’, of course we would not allow it,” he was quoted as saying.

Dodik noted that he could not choose the Serbian government because this was up to the political parties in Serbia, adding that this was something entirely different from the support he gave to Democratic Party (DS) leader Boris Tadić in the presidential election.

“I do not get to be satisfied or dissatisfied with the results of the elections in Serbia, I am interested in a stable, strong and even stronger Serbia. I can have personal impressions but I respect the decision of the majority of Serbia’s citizens. And I expect that the government will be formed soon,” he concluded.