Before traveling to Jerusalem, Dodik met in Tel Aviv with Israeli Minister of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Amichai Chikli, with whom he discussed relations between Republika Srpska and Israel. Kurir reports that Dodik, in a post on X, described the meeting as a continuation of talks that began in Banja Luka:
Another meeting with Chikli, not long after he was a guest of Banja Luka and Republika Srpska at the opening of the Israeli Chamber of Commerce office. Back then we agreed that friendship should be turned into concrete investments, technology and economic cooperation. Today’s meeting was a continuation of that conversation and confirmation that relations between Republika Srpska and Israel are gaining ever more concrete substance.
Dodik also said, Kurir reports, that Republika Srpska wants to institutionalize cooperation with Israel, particularly in new technologies, the economy, agriculture, security and cyber protection, since Israel, as he put it, leads the world in that field. Chikli, for his part, expressed hope that the question of establishing direct flights between Israel and Republika Srpska would be resolved, and said he had liked Banja Luka during his recent stay in Srpska.
The same day, Dodik also met in Tel Aviv with Israeli war veteran Moshe Levi, a recipient of Israel’s Medal of Courage. Dodik decorated Levi last year with the Order of the Flag of Republika Srpska with Golden Wreath, so this meeting, according to sources, had more the character of renewing an earlier acquaintance than a protocol event.
Why Does the Meeting Matter Ahead of Bosnia’s Elections?
The meeting with Netanyahu comes as Bosnia and Herzegovina’s political scene turns toward elections in two weeks, which will again test how firmly Dodik holds Republika Srpska’s institutions. The images from official meetings in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, together with announcements of concrete economic projects and possible direct flights, are part of the same narrative SNSD has built during earlier visits: that Republika Srpska has partners beyond its traditional allies in Belgrade, Moscow and Budapest.