Members of Russia’s nationalistic motorcycle club the Night Wolves entered Bosnia & Herzegovina late on March 20 despite a ban that the country has imposed on their leaders, Klix.ba reported.
The Night Wolves, known for their nationalism and ties to the Kremlin, had announced a tour of Bosnia and Serbia under the slogan “Russian Balkans” in March. The group planned to tour Bosnia and Serbia for around nine days, during which they wanted to cover around 2,000km, beginning on March 19 in Serbia’s capital Belgrade.
A few days before the start of the tour, Bosnia banned the group’s leaders from entering the country due to security concerns. Following the ban, one of the group’s leaders — the Serbian representative of the Night Wolves Sasa Savic — threatened to sue Bosnia’s Defence Minister Dragan Mektic.
The Night Wolves claim that their tour has no political context, only cultural, and that they do not pose a threat to anyone.
However, the club is under US sanctions for its involvement in a pro-Russian separatist insurgency in Ukraine. Critics of the group say its main aim is to promote President Vladimir Putin's brand of Russian nationalism.
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