BiH Foreign Minister confirms Dodik will be stripped of his diplomatic passport, he must return it within 15 days

In a statement on social media, Konakovic said Dodik must return the passport within 15 days. If he fails to comply, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will notify the Border Police and Bosnia’s diplomatic and consular network that the document has been invalidated.

The decision comes one day after Dodik’s mandate as president of BiH's Republika Srpska (RS) entity officially ended, following a ruling by the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina rejecting his lawyer’s appeal against the Central Election Commission’s decision to revoke his mandate. The court’s ruling is final.

Under Bosnia’s election law, the Central Election Commission is required to call early elections for the presidency of Republika Srpska within 90 days. The newly elected president would serve until the general elections scheduled for October next year.

The Central Election Commission revoked Dodik’s mandate days after the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina announced in early August that he had been convicted and sentenced to one year in prison, along with a six-year ban on holding public office in the country, for defying decisions of the international High Representative.