U.S. sanctions network linked to Bosnian Serb leader Dodik

Dodik, the president of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Serb Republic, has used his official position to accumulate personal wealth through companies linked to himself and to his son, Igor Dodik, the U.S. Treasury Department said in a press release on Tuesday.

In Bosnia, the U.S. is sanctioning Milenko Cicic, as well as the entities Infinity International Group, Infinity Media, K-2 Audio Services Banja Luka, Kaldera Company El PGP, Prointer ITSS D.O.O. Banja Luka Clan Infinity International Group, Sirius 2010 and Una World Network. The U.S. is also imposing sanctions on Djordje Djuric, a citizen of Serbia.

Djuric is the owner of Infinity and its subsidiaries, while Cicic is the general director of Kaldera.

“The United States condemns Dodik’s continued efforts to erode the institutions that have ensured peace and stability for Bosnia and Herzegovina and the region,” said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson.

In January 2022, the U.S. sanctioned Milorad Dodik for violating and obstructing the Dayton Peace Accords and engaging in corruption. Additionally, in October 2023, the U.S. sanctioned Dodik’s adult children, Igor and Gorica Dodik, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for Dodik.

According to the US-brokered Dayton peace accords that put an end to the war in Bosnia in the 1990s, the country is divided into two entities - the Serb Republic (mostly populated by ethnic Serbs) and the Federation (majority populated by Bosniaks and Croats), covering 49% and 51% of the country's territory, respectively.

Dodik has long pushed for the Serb Republic to secede from Bosnia.