Dodik and Putin: gas price unchanged, Russia eyes Orao
The Moscow talks lasted about 50 minutes, five days before the BiH election. Dodik says the gas price stays the same, there will be no sanctions on Russia and no visas for Russians.
SNSD (Alliance of Independent Social Democrats) leader Milorad Dodik and Republika Srpska Prime Minister Savo Minic met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Tuesday, September 29, 2026. The talks lasted about 50 minutes, and for Serbia the most interesting part concerns the Orao aviation institute in Bijeljina: the Republika Srpska government approved the sale of 30 percent of its capital to an international consortium led by the Belgrade company Glotec in mid-year, and after the meeting Dodik said the Russian side is interested in cooperating with the same institute.
We reported on the announcement of the meeting earlier, when nothing was yet known about its substance. The outcomes are now available, as presented by the participants themselves.
What did Dodik say about the gas price?
After the meeting, Dodik said it was confirmed that the gas price for Republika Srpska stays the same. The statements we reviewed give no figure. According to Telegraf, the construction of a gas-fired power plant was also discussed, and Dodik added that this was his 29th meeting with Putin. Radio Free Europe gives a different number: it calls this the 11th meeting between Dodik and Putin since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Dodik used the length of the talks as an argument for their weight:
“We talked about all the most important topics, and the very fact that the meeting lasted about 50 minutes shows what kind of attention it was given”
That is what Dodik told media in Republika Srpska. He also proposed that the Russian and Republika Srpska governments hold a joint session once a year.
What is being agreed on the Orao institute?
The Bijeljina-based Orao is an overhaul institute for the military and aviation industry, majority-owned by Republika Srpska. Glotec, which has been approved to enter its capital, maintains and overhauls jet engines and supplies spare aircraft parts. Dodik said this about Russian interest:
“In terms of expanding a certain dimension of the business. We agreed to do that, and the Russian side will propose certain possibilities to us”
Minic summed up the topic more briefly: “President Putin confirmed cooperation with our company Orao”. By Dodik’s account, the Russian side has yet to propose concrete options.
Sanctions, visas and NATO: what was the message to Brussels?
Dodik also sent a message to Brussels from the meeting. He said:
“We feel the pressure from Brussels too, but our policies remain the same. We do not allow sanctions on Russia. We support military neutrality and do not allow entry into NATO. There will be no introduction of visas for Russian citizens in BiH.”
Dodik posted a video from the meeting on his account on X. He also said he congratulated Putin on his election victory: “I congratulated Putin on his election victory. Everything suggests we will have success too.” According to Telegraf, Minic spoke on behalf of the Republika Srpska government about its positions on NATO membership and its opposition to sanctions on Russian citizens.
Unlike Dodik, Minic was attending a meeting at this level for the first time: “This is my first meeting at this level and I am under the impression”. After the meeting he wrote on X: “It is a great pleasure to meet with the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin. Our people know how much the friendship, mutual respect and support of Russia mean to us in difficult times”.
In a statement from the meeting published by Radio-Television of Republika Srpska, Putin said:
“We do not want foreign influence to be decisive. We want a fairer attitude toward Serbs and the Serbian people. We want stability of the entire region.”
Why does the timing of the meeting matter?
The meeting took place five days before the general elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina, scheduled for October 4. As Radio-Television of Republika Srpska reports, Putin expressed support for the ruling coalition in the entity, led by Dodik. Radio Free Europe recalls that Putin also publicly wished Dodik and his party success ahead of the 2018 and 2022 elections, while official Moscow has repeatedly backed the moves of the Republika Srpska authorities and advocated closing the Office of the High Representative.
Dodik is not on the candidate lists this year. He was finally convicted by the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina for failing to implement decisions of the High Representative and is banned from holding public office for six years, so formally he is only the party leader, although, as Radio Free Europe puts it, he still sets the pace of the election campaign. SNSD ministers in the Council of Ministers of BiH block decisions on the sanctions through which BiH joined the European Union’s policy toward Moscow, an issue that directly concerns Serbia too, as a neighboring country on the road to Europe.
The previous Dodik-Putin talks took place in Moscow on May 9 this year, at the Victory Day commemoration, when the Republika Srpska delegation was the only European delegation at the parade. Dodik announced the Russian offers for Orao without a deadline, and the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina go to the polls on October 4.
