The entity parliament of Republika Srpska, Bosnia's Serb-majority region, did not back the veto of Bosnia Serb Presidency member Milorad Dodik on the trade and partnership agreement between Bosnia and Herzegovina and the UK.

Out of 62 members of Republika Srpska National Assembly, 51 supported Dodik's proposal, which was not sufficient to dispute the decision of the Bosnian Presidency. Eleven deputies abstained from the voting.

Dodik used the mechanism of the vital national interest protection earlier this month at the Presidency session, to dispute the agreement between the two countries, claiming that it violated the vital national interest of the Serb-majority entity.

Dodik, who was elected in Republika Srpska, had said the matter would be forwarded to the entity parliament and that he believes the National Assembly would reject the deal as well.

Prior to the vote, Dodik addressed the MPs explaining that some of the issues about the agreement were it was written in the Bosnian language and the mention of Repubic of Kosovo without a reference to the UN Security Council Resolution on status of Kosovo.

Following the vote, Dodik accused the opposition of “voting against (Republika) Srpska.”

“This also proves their obedience towards the British Embassy, because the RS institutions determined that the agreement does not honour the Dayton competencies. The people should know that,” Dodik tweeted.