Putin, BiH Presidency Member Milorad Dodik to meet today

Russian President Vladimir Putin and BiH Presidency Member Milorad Dodik are about to meet today, according to a spokesman for Kremlin Dmitry Peskov.

According to Peskov a journalist spokesman for the TASS, certain contacts are being prepared and the public will be informed when the time comes.

Head of the RS Representation in Moscow, Du ko Perovi said earlier on September 20 that Dodik will meet with the President of the Russian Federation in Moscow.

The previous meeting between Putin and Dodik took place in June at the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg.

BiH Presidency member Milorad Dodik said that it will be an opportunity to discuss concrete projects in the field of energy before the meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

According to an interview with Russian news agency Tass, Dodik stated that he would discuss a number of current political issues with Putin, including Ukraine and the behavior of Western representatives.

Regarding specific projects, we would like to receive additional confirmation that the priority will be on all economic activities related to the oil and fuel oil refinery, construction of gas pipelines, gas power plants. Dodik said that we will wait for the moment, and we will start working on those projects as soon as he appears.

Dodik noted that Republika Srpska is not a big consumer of gas like Serbia, but that the gas perspective is very important for it.

We want to build a gas pipeline to Banja Luka, to build power plants that would use gas. In that case, the RS would become a big consumer of gas. Dodik said that the plans were based on Russia's potential and our cooperation with Gazprom.

He pointed out that Bosniaks are oriented towards the West, and they vote against when the RS tries to solve the issue of gas flow from Serbia through the BiH border, but he assessed that they cannot do this forever because they will work on it to continue.

Dodik said that Republika Srpska is grateful to Putin for maximum consistency in the preserving of the Dayton Peace Agreement and that Russia never had any political demands from him.

Republika Srpska said Dodik wants to expand cultural cooperation with Russia, he said that the construction of a Russian-Serbian Orthodox center is underway in Banja Luka and he will propose to Putin to visit Banja Luka when the center is completed.