Bosnia & Herzegovina’s Republika Srpska declared German State Minister for Europe and Climate Dr Anna Lührmann persona non grata on April 4 after a request by the entity’s separatist President Milorad Dodik.

The action caused a diplomatic scandal as Republika Srpska has no legal rights to expel anyone. Such decisions, according to Bosnian laws, can be taken only by the state-level authorities.

Lührmann visited Republika Srpska’s administrative centre Banja Luka on April 4 as part of her visit to Bosnia. A day earlier, she and Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger said at a press briefing in Sarajevo that Austria and Germany are banning the entry of Dodik, Republika Srpska’s Prime Minister Radovan Viskovic and parliament speaker Nenad Stevandic as they are responsible for the country’s destabilisation.

According to Lührmann, Republika Srpska’s authorities threatened her and her delegation with violence.

“The secessionist actions of Dodik are unacceptable. Towards the end of my visit to Banja Luka he demonstrated again his destructive behaviour. His representatives threatened me and my delegation with violence. This is clearly a sign of weakness,” Lührmann said in a video post on X.

“At today's telephone session, the government of the Republic of Srpska adopted a conclusion expressing its protest against the unilateral and politically motivated measures taken without a transparent legal basis and with disregard for the principle of impartiality by certain officials of the Federal Republic of Germany, including the Minister of European Affairs and Climate, Ms. Anna Lührmann, in the form of imposing sanctions on the President of the Republic of Srpska, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Srpska and the Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Srpska,” the government said in a statement.

It added it considers Lührmann’s visit to Banja Luka and Germany’s decision to ban entry of its top politicians a direct interference in internal affairs and a violation of international conventions.

“In order to protect the political and institutional integrity of the Republika Srpska, the government introduces reciprocal measures, which constitute a proportionate and legitimate response in accordance with international practices, and proclaims Ms. Ana Lührmann as persona non grata in the Republic of Srpska, and orders the Ministry of the Interior to escort the same person, when entering the territory of the Republic of Srpska, outside the borders,” the government noted in the statement.

“Like any other unwelcome visitor, German Minister Anna Lührmann stealthily came to Banja Luka to meet her friends in the basement … I expect that the Republika Srpska police will soon escort her out of Republika Srpska forever,” Dodik commented on X.

After Lührmann and her team were removed from Republika Srpska, Dodik wrote another post calling the German minister ‘stupid’.

“She's gone. I cannot believe that she is so naïve that, after all the lies and insults she has said, just to please the Sarajevo bazaar, she expected us to silently observe her actions in Republika Srpska. I am not sure if it is her fault or if she is a fan of the opposition. Both are stupid,” he wrote. 

Lührmann said that Dodik is losing support by people in Republika Srpska and is increasingly isolated.

“I have received many messages from Republika Srpska. People are truly ashamed of Dodik’s actions,” Lührmann said.

The German foreign ministry commented that Dodik has no authority to declare anyone persona non grata as Republika Srpska is not a state but an entity.

As expected, Republika Srpska’s action enraged Sarajevo. State-level Foreign Affairs Minister Elmedin Konakovic said at a press conference that this was one of the biggest diplomatic scandals and represents a terrorist act as Dodik and his people threatened Lührmann and her delegation with violence.

“Yesterday, Dodik directly demanded that Anna Lührmann be intimidated, frightened and expelled. We have official information from people on the ground, who were there, that Dodik personally insisted that this matter be brought to an end. The director and the minister of the interior were not in favour of such a scenario, but received a direct order for it. Borislav Boskic from the RS Ministry of the Interior received a direct order to inform the delegation to urgently leave the area of Banja Luka,” Konakovic said.

He added that Sarajevo will inform all international institutions, including EUFOR and Nato, about Dodik’s actions.

“We really expect everyone to understand that this story has long since gone beyond normal, but has now moved into life-threatening,” Konakovic said.

“We do not want the day of the suffering of the policemen who arrested Dodik to be marked in Bosnia and Herzegovina next year or in the coming years, and we will do everything to prevent that from happening,” Konakovic added.

Igor Crnadak, leader of the opposition Serb SDS party, also criticised Dodik’s actions.

“The leadership of Republika Srpska continues to demolish the international reputation and image of Srpska, in addition to endangering thousands of jobs, numerous business activities of our companies and the free movement of our citizens,” he wrote on X.

“Will any of the international friends, with whom the SNSD boasts, at least one country, publicly support today's move of the Viskovic’s government, to expel the German minister from Republika Srpska? Not. The leadership of Republika Srpska is alone in its madness. But we continue the fight,” Crnadak wrote.