REPUBLIKA SRPSKA AND MILORAD DODIK CANNOT BE BYPASSED POLITICALLY AND NOT ONLY IN BiH

SARAJEVO, OCTOBER 7 /SRNA/ - SNSD remains committed to the principle that legitimately elected representatives of all three constituent peoples - Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs - should take part in government, while Republika Srpska and Milorad Dodik's policies remain a political force that cannot be ignored, not only in BiH, SNSD Presidency member Staša Košarac said.

"Election winners should be part of government. Every other solution has brought us into a very difficult and almost isolated situation," Košarac said.

He added that some agreements had already been announced, while SNSD bodies would make the relevant decisions.

Asked about SNSD's policy towards the EU and BiH's European path, Košarac said there could be no European path if Republika Srpska were to lose its constitutional powers.

"We will not discuss anything within any global framework if that means losing Republika Srpska's constitutional powers. We will not give up Republika Srpska's constitutional powers," Košarac told reporters in Sarajevo.

Košarac, who is also Deputy Chairperson of the Council of Ministers, said no one today knew what prospects the EU had, adding that only a few politicians from FBiH were using what he described as the illusion of EU integration to score political points.

"When we called for strengthening sovereignty in BiH and for viewing the EU as a partner, with us defining our own needs here, some parties from FBiH instead went submissively to the European Commission and advocated the Commission's positions rather than protecting the interests of Republika Srpska and FBiH," Košarac said.

He added that he would never protect the interests of the EU, but those of people in Republika Srpska.

"From the implementation of the Stabilization and Association Agreement and many other agreements we have with the EU, I can see that we in Republika Srpska and FBiH are losing out," Košarac concluded.