BELGRADE -- The leaders of Serbia and the Serb-led entity within Bosnia-Herzegovina called for the unity of ethnic Serbs throughout the region during a rally in Belgrade on June 8, an action certain to anger Western leaders who have condemned any suggestions by entity officials to separate from Bosnia.
The so-called All-Serbian Assembly was organized under the slogan "One People, One Assembly -- Serbia and Srpska" and produced what it called the Declaration On The Protection Of National And Political Rights And The Common Future Of The Serbian People.”
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic stated the language of the declaration was carefully chosen and that it focuses on Kosovo, takes into account the Dayton agreement that settled the Yugoslav war of the mid-1990s, and didn't mention separation from Bosnia.
"I won't intrude on [the international community's] decisions," he said. "I only ask that you think a million times about how much we all need peace."
He added, though, that Serbia "will never abandon Republika Srpska," the Bosnian Serb entity.
"My only plea to you is to attempt to resolve all problems peacefully and in dialogue with all other peoples [in Bosnia] in accordance with the Dayton agreement," Vucic said.
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Belgrade Rally Calls For Unity With Bosnian Serbs
Milorad Dodik, leader of the Republika Srpska, said the declaration was a document that supports the interests of the Serbian nation.
Dodik stated that Republika Srpska was committed to the Dayton accords but that it is possible the entity will soon have to seek Serbia's support to resolve its status.
"It is impossible to live with those who so treacherously and maliciously, falsely, and secretly tried to impose genocide as a permanent feature of this nation, which it is not," Dodik told the audience at Republic Square.
He added that any action will be done "peacefully."
SEE ALSO: Bosnian Serbs' Move Toward Secession 'Dangerous, Irresponsible,' U.S. Envoy WarnsDodik, who is friendly with Russian President Vladimir Putin, has been placed under sanctions by the United States and Britain over his efforts to undermine the Dayton peace accords, which led to the formation of a Bosnian state consisting of two entities -- a Bosniak-Croat federation and Republika Srpska -- tied together by a weak central government.
The action comes amid high tensions after the United Nations on May 23 approved a resolution to commemorate the 1995 Srebrenica genocide in Bosnia annually, over strong opposition from Serbs.
The resolution designates July 11 as the International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica, thus establishing an annual day of commemoration for the massacre of more than 8,000 local Bosnian Muslim men and boys almost 30 years ago.
The UN resolution had sparked protests and a lobbying campaign by Serbia's president and the Bosnian Serb leadership to block the adoption of the resolution, which was sponsored by Germany and Rwanda with 32 co-sponsors, including the United States, France, Britain, and Italy.
Dodik stated that "we are not a genocidal people, and this resolution does not concern us in terms of implementing it."
Dodik's Belgrade visit came after he met with Putin in St. Petersburg.