ZAGREB, 25 April (Hina) – Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Friday called for a de-escalation of tensions in Bosnia and Herzegovina following a meeting with the High Representative for BiH, Christian Schmidt. “We continue to engage in constructive dialogue with High Representative Christian Schmidt. I expressed concern over the current political crisis and once again called for tensions to be eased. We condemn actions that threaten the Dayton framework and BiH’s functionality,” Plenković wrote on social media platform X.

He added that peace, stability, and BiH’s European path are of strategic importance to Croatia, as is ensuring full equality for Croats as one of the country’s constituent peoples. He stressed the urgent need for electoral reform to guarantee legitimate representation for Croatian political representatives.

Plenković and Schmidt were joined at the meeting by Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlić Radman. The talks came a day after Schmidt announced a decision to cut off budget funding to political parties led by Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik and National Assembly Speaker Nenad Stevandić.

Schmidt told reporters in Sarajevo that his decision means Dodik’s Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD) and Stevandić’s United Srpska (US) will no longer receive public funds from any level of government, from national to municipal.

The move followed an incident on Wednesday, when several officers from the State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA), without armed backup, attempted to enter the RS government office in East Sarajevo to serve Dodik with an arrest warrant. They were blocked by heavily armed RS police officers.

Dodik later told reporters he was not afraid of arrest, branding SIPA and the BiH Court an “occupying force” and declaring they would not be allowed to operate on RS territory.

He also accused Schmidt of acting “criminally and in a fascist manner,” claiming the High Representative was preparing legislation on state property in BiH, an action Dodik said would prompt Republika Srpska to declare immediate secession.

In mid-March, the BiH Court ordered a one-month detention for Dodik, Stevandić, and RS Prime Minister Radovan Višković after they failed to respond to summonses from the BiH Prosecutor’s Office in an investigation into alleged attempts to undermine the constitutional order.