Croatian President Zoran Milanovic stood up for President of Bosnia's Serb-majority entity Republika Srpska Milorad Dodik, stressing that he was elected in a legal an fair manner with a margin of 30,000 votes.

Commenting on the position of Bosnian Serb leader, who is due to appear before the State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina on 16 October for refusing to comply with the decisions of the High Representative Christian Schmidt, Milanovic said that all that is “an attempt by the Americans and the little English to destroy him and then, I suppose, they could install real Chetniks (extremists) in power.”

BiH Court confirms indictment against RS President Milorad Dodik

Those actions are to the detriment of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Dodik is the representative of the Serb people. He was elected legally and fairly. His party (SNSD) won a convincing victory and he won with a margin of 30,000 votes, Milanovc said, telling the international community to “keep their hands off Dodik.”

Milanovic also commented on the ongoing Middle East conflit, noting that “israel has the right to self-defence but not to revenge and massacre.”

“I have condemned the killings (committed by Hamas), I have even expressed outrage and indignation. The right to self-defence, which Israel has, does not include the right to revenge and massacre of civilians,” Milanovic told the press.