Original article (in Bosnian) was published on 18/4/2025; Author: Nerma Šehović
An article, published on the website of the public broadcaster Radio Television of Republika Srpska (RTRS) on March 13, 2025, featured a headline claiming that “more and more world politicians are realizing” that the High Representative Christian Schmidt is “to blame for the crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina”.
The article contains an excerpt from the show “Pecat”, which aired on RTRS on March 13, 2025. The introduction states the following:
As the greatest political crisis in post-Dayton Bosnia and Herzegovina reaches its peak, and as the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH – unconstitutional from the perspective of Republika Srpska – launches an open offensive against the highest officials of Srpska, political Sarajevo is turning to a well-worn tactic: increasingly frequent calls to the international community, and even to NATO, to intervene in internal political affairs by taking their side.
However, this time the response is far from unanimous.
While some, predictably, condemn the actions of the institutions of Srpska, others are calling for domestic institutions to resolve the problems, and there are more and more voices openly stating that the Office of the High Representative (OHR) is an outdated institution and that it is the main source of instability in BiH – a view that aligns with that of Republika Srpska.
The segment states that neutral messages have come from the United States and NATO regarding the current political crisis in BiH. Statements were aired from four politicians who explicitly supported the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, or questioned the actions of the Office of the High Representative. These include: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov; Harald Vilimsky, a Member of the European Parliament from Austria’s far-right Freedom Party; Zeljana Zovko, a Member of the European Parliament; and Thierry Mariani, also a Member of the European Parliament and a member of France’s far-right National Rally party.
The report also includes a clip from NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte’s appearance on the show “Klix Studio”, in which Rutte states that Bosnia and Herzegovina’s internal issues should primarily be resolved internally. This statement is used as an “argument” to support the claim that NATO is sending neutral messages.
In the report, it is repeatedly claimed that the Court and the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina are “unconstitutional”, and Christian Schmidt is referred to as the “self-proclaimed” High Representative.
Not so “far from unanimous”
On February 26, 2025, the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina issued a first-instance verdict sentencing the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, to one year in prison and six years of disqualification from performing the duties of entity president, due to his disregard for and non-implementation of decisions made by the High Representative. Dodik then initiated the introduction of laws interpreted as undermining the constitutional order of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
On February 27, the National Assembly of Republika Srpska (NSRS) passed laws that ban the operation of the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH, the Court of BiH, the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council (HJPC), and the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA) within the territory of Republika Srpska. On March 5, 2025, Dodik signed the decrees enacting these laws, and they were published the same day in the Official Gazette of RS (link). Following this, the Constitutional Court of BiH temporarily suspended the laws, and on March 17, 2025, the Court of BiH issued warrants for Dodik, RS Prime Minister Radovan Viskovic, and NSRS President Nenad Stevandic.
As for the U.S. response to this political crisis, it could hardly be described as neutral. Besides U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who explicitly condemned Dodik’s actions (his statement is briefly mentioned in the Pecat report), the U.S. State Department also reacted on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) following the verdict (1, 2). Sharp criticism of Dodik came from both Democratic and Republican U.S. senators (1, 2), and the U.S. Embassy in Bosnia and Herzegovina condemned his actions through its official X account as well.
The claim of “neutral” messages from NATO in the report is supported by quoting statements made by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte during his visit to Sarajevo. In his appearance on the show Klix Studio on March 10, 2025, responding to a question by journalist Emela Burdzovic about who is to blame for the current crisis, he said:
“Why would you ask someone outside the country to judge an internal matter?”
RTRS aired this part of the statement on Pecat but left out the rest.
Emela Burdzovic: You still haven’t answered my question, who is to blame for the current crisis?
Rutte: Why would you ask someone outside the country to judge an internal matter? All I can say is that I firmly believe that for the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina, it is important to stick to principles. The principles are: state institutions, ensuring that when a court issues a ruling, it is implemented, and adhering to those basic things.
Burdzovic: That is a message for Milorad Dodik, primarily.
Rutte: Of course. When I say this, I try to be impartial. I’m sending this message to everyone. We are now dealing with a concerning situation in Banja Luka, in Republika Srpska. Naturally, we are watching closely. There is an element of secessionism, which concerns us. We do not want to see the borders of Bosnia and Herzegovina changed. But again, there is a request for someone outside Bosnia and Herzegovina to judge what is happening here. In the end, it has been 25 years since 1995, pardon, it has been 30 years since 1995, 30 years since the Dayton Peace Agreement. I would say: “Take matters into your own hands, govern your country”. You are a sovereign state with territorial integrity.
So, Rutte did say that the institutions should try to resolve this crisis on their own, without interference from foreign factors. However, he also emphasized that the rulings of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina should be respected and implemented, that the state should take matters into its own hands, and that NATO is monitoring the situation.
During his visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Rutte also expressed support for the work of the Office of the High Representative, stated that inflammatory rhetoric and attacks on the constitutional order of BiH are unacceptable, and confirmed that NATO will stand by BiH in case of escalation.
The situation in BiH was also discussed by the European Parliament on March 12, 2025. Although some individuals mentioned in the “Pecat” segment did express support for Dodik, the majority of members of parliament condemned his actions and expressed support for the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, emphasizing the importance of respecting the Constitution.
Although the support for Dodik by certain European parliamentarians is portrayed in “Pecat” as a new and significant shift in the EU’s stance toward the RS leadership, this support is already fairly standard. Far-right parties from EU countries, such as National Rally, Alternative for Germany (AfD), the Freedom Party of Austria, and Hungary’s Fidesz, have maintained good relations with Dodik for years. Russian authorities have also traditionally supported him.
Therefore, an analysis of the reactions to the current crisis in BiH coming from abroad suggests that, contrary to the claims from RTRS, nothing significant has changed compared to previous years. A few political actors and powers that have supported Dodik in the past continue to do so, while those who criticized him mostly continue to criticize him now.
The Prosecution and Court of BiH are not unconstitutional
In an attempt to justify the actions of the leadership of Republika Srpska and present the current crisis as a disagreement between two politically opposing but equally legitimate sides, officials from RS and media close to them, such as RTRS, repeatedly claim that the Court and Prosecutor’s Office of BiH are unconstitutional institutions.
This is not true.
It is true that the Court of BiH and the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH, like SIPA and the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council (HJPC), are not mentioned in the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, i.e. Annex 4 of the Dayton Peace Agreement. However, Article 3 of the BiH Constitution states that Bosnia and Herzegovina may assume responsibility over certain matters, and in such cases, new institutions may be established. Article 3 of the BiH Constitution states:
“Bosnia and Herzegovina shall assume responsibility in other matters as agreed by the entities; which are determined in Annexes 5 through 8 of the General Framework Agreement; or which are necessary to preserve the sovereignty, territorial integrity, political independence, and international subjectivity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in accordance with the division of responsibilities among the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina. If necessary, additional institutions may be established to carry out such responsibilities”.
In accordance with this constitutional provision, the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH, the Court of BiH, SIPA, and the HJPC were established through the passing of laws in the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with votes from representatives from Republika Srpska as well (1, 2, 3).
On the other hand, the National Assembly of RS (NSRS) does not have the authority to ban the operations of any of these state institutions within the territory of RS, because lower levels of government, such as entity parliaments, do not have the legal capacity to overrule laws passed by higher levels of government, such as the state parliament.
The RTRS report also claims that Christian Schmidt is a “self-proclaimed” high representative. The claim that Schmidt was illegally appointed has circulated since he took office in 2021. Our fact-checking partner web portal Istinomjer explained back then why this claim is false. Namely, the claim about the “illegitimate” High Representative is usually argued by pointing out the fact that his appointment was not confirmed by the UN Security Council. While this is true, confirmation by the Security Council is not necessary.
However, the fact that the lack of confirmation by the UN Security Council is not without precedent is shown by the case from 2005, when Christian Schwarz-Schilling was appointed as High Representative. At the time, outgoing High Representative Paddy Ashdown informed the UN Secretary-General in writing that Schwarz-Schilling would assume the position on January 31, 2006, and that this information should be forwarded to the Security Council for review and possible agreement.
Moreover, there is no defined procedure for selecting the High Representative, and even the first holder of the office, Carl Bildt, was not appointed by the UN Security Council.
So, although there have been cases in the past where the Security Council commented on the selection of the High Representative, there is no legal basis for requiring such a practice, and therefore, claims about Christian Schmidt’s lack of legitimacy are unfounded.
Schmidt is not a “self-proclaimed” High Representative. He was appointed to that position by the Steering Board of the Peace Implementation Council in May 2021.
The narrative RTRS presents to its viewers, that Milorad Dodik is a victim of political persecution for defending the interests of RS and that more and more international officials are recognizing this, falls apart when even the most basic facts are reviewed. The political actions of the RS leadership are not in line with the Constitution of BiH and have been condemned by much of the international community.
Therefore, the claims that the Court and Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina are unconstitutional, and that Christian Schmidt is a “self-proclaimed” High Representative, are considered manipulations of the facts. The report aired in the show “Pecat,” which selectively presents the reactions of international officials to the crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina, is regarded as biased reporting.
