Belgrade has rejected a ruling by the Bosnian and Herzegovina appeals court upholding the prison sentence of Milorad Dodik, a Bosnian Serb leader, Agence France-Presse reported, citing BNR.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said the court ruling undermines security in the Balkan region.
In February, a court in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo sentenced Dodik to one year in prison for failing to comply with the decisions of the international envoy responsible for the 1995 peace agreements in Bosnia. Dodik, who has not yet been arrested, was also banned from holding office for six years.
Bosnia's appeals court said on Friday that it had upheld the lower court's decision and no further appeal was allowed.
Speaking after an emergency meeting of Serbia's National Security Council, Vucic said the decisions were a "destabilizing factor" and that "the security situation in the region has been seriously undermined." According to him, the decision of the Bosnian appeals court is undemocratic, immoral and "a serious attack on the Serbian people of Bosnia and Herzegovina".
When asked on Saturday whether Dodik would be arrested if an arrest warrant was issued and he entered Serbian territory, Vučić replied that "he would not".
"Milorad Dodik is welcome on the territory of the Republic of Serbia. He is the legitimately, legally elected president of the Republika Srpska", Vučić added.