Serbian President denies interfering with election in RS

Tanjug/Dragan Kujundžić/Arhiv

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday he has never interfered with the election in Bosnia's Republika Srpska (RS) entity but that he is following the election campaign in that country.

Vucic's statement came as a response to the Serb member of Bosnia's tripartite Presidency, Mladen Ivanic, who said for Bosnian media that Serbia's leadership should not make any difference among the Serb people in the upcoming election.

“I think that Serbia's leadership should see all of us living on this side of the Drina river the same and that there should be no division to those who are loved more and those who are loved less,” said Ivanic, who will run for the same post in the October election as a candidate form RS, Bosnia's Serb-dominated entity.

Commenting on the alleged visit of Serbia's President to the RS on October 5, two days before the general election in Bosnia, Ivanic said RS President Milorad Dodik, his political opponent, is involving Serbia's leadership in the election campaign way too much.

“It is on Serbia's leadership to decide on that,” Ivanic said for Vijesti.ba news portal.

Vucic dismissed the allegations about meddling with the election in the Bosnia's entity adding he was not sure to whom Ivanic exactly referred here.

“I wish he gave this kind of a lesson to some others who are openly interfering with the election in Republika Srpska,” said Serbia's President without specifying who is he talking about.

Vucic briefly noted he was following the election campaign in the neighbouring country but he refused to comment on it until the election is over.