Russian President Vladimir Putin on April 1 received separatist Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik, who has been travelling to his allies over the past week while wanted by Bosnian law enforcement.

In March, Bosnia’s state authorities issued central arrest warrants and travel bans for Dodik, Republika Srpska parliament speaker Nenad Stevandić and the entity’s Prime Minister Radovan Viškovic after they refused to comply with a detention order.

The three are wanted for pushing legislative changes that violate the state constitution and the Dayton Peace Agreement, which ended the 1992-1995 war. The proposed changes would effectively lead to Republika Srpska’s secession from Bosnia, in direct violation of the agreement. 

Dodik is among the most loyal allies of Putin and, according to numerous reports, has been accommodating paramilitary camps training Russian and Bosnian Serb groups for years.

Dodik said that Putin is well aware of the situation of Republika Srpska.

“Russia is a very important country for Republika Srpska within the Security Council and has always been objective. Russia is the guarantor of the peace treaty, and this is what President Putin said at the meeting,” Dodik said after the meeting in a post on X.

“As part of this, Russia will advocate for the completion and cessation of the work of international institutions, especially the fake high representative, or, as he says, the illegitimate representative. He was interested in the details, what we do and how we do it," Dodik added.

He also said he informed Putin that the Dayton peace agreement that ended the 1992-1995 bloody Bosnian war “has failed”.

Dodik said he will return to Republika Srpska on April 5 and will hold a meeting with the entity’s top political leadership.

“Political Sarajevo is trying to prevent my international activities, and they want to portray it as some kind of violation. I did not ask for Russian citizenship or anything they say or impose as a narrative,” Dodik wrote.

There were suggestions that Dodik had fled to Serbia, Israel and then Moscow, seeking to evade arrest in Bosnia.

US senator Chuck Grassley criticised Dodik’s visit to Moscow. “Just like Assad in Syria, would-be dictator Dodik flees to Russia for safe haven. He is about to face justice in Bosnia & Herzegovina for [his] failed attempt to breakup country and stop integration with Europe,” he wrote on X.

However, he received support from Rod Blagojevich, former governor of the US state of Illinois and a close associate of US President Donald Trump.

“[US Vice-President J. D.] Vance’s recent speech in Munich got it right. Left wing weaponised prosecutors, courts, & high representatives are trying to jail populist conservative leaders elected by the people & bar them from holding office. What they are doing to LePen in France, the left wing high representative in Bosnia has been doing to Dodik, the pro Trump, pro Israel, duly elected president of the Republic of Srpska”, Blagojevich wrote on X.

Meanwhile, Israeli news outlet Haaretz reported that Dodik paid Israeli attorney Marc Zell to lobby for the lifting of US sanctions against him. Dodik, his family and closest associates are blacklisted by the US.

Zell is chair of the Republican Party in Israel and, according to the news outlet, recently registered as a lobbyist on behalf of Republika Srpska.

Zell will also work towards the lifting of sanctions imposed on Dodik’s family, as well as Zeljka Cvijanovic, the Serb member of Bosnia’s tripartite presidency.