The United States has lifted sanctions imposed on Milorad Dodik, former president of Republika Srpska, the Serb entity of Bosnia & Herzegovina, a statement from the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said on October 29. 

The decision reverses measures that had targeted Dodik for alleged corruption and actions seen as undermining the 1995 Dayton peace accords, which ended the Bosnian war.

Sanctions have also been lifted on other individuals from Republika Srpska who were on the US Office of Foreign Assets Control list, including Nenad Stevandić, the speaker of the entity assembly of the Republika Srpska National Assembly, the statement added. 

The decision comes after several close allies of Trump’s pushed for a lifting of sanctions, including MAGA influencer Laura Loomer and first-term Trump administration officials Rudy Giuliani and Michael Flynn, according to Politico.

According to the US Department of the Treasury, the decision to remove Dodik from the sanctions list follows an internal policy review of measures related to the Western Balkans. The Department of State said in a statement that it had removed 48 individuals and entities from the Western Balkans sanctions program and that it would continue to work with those “from across the political spectrum” on shared priorities.

“The constructive actions taken in recent weeks by the Republika Srpska National Assembly should improve stability in Bosnia and Herzegovina and will enable a partnership with the United States based on mutual interests, economic potential, and shared prosperity,” the State Department said.

The National Assembly annulled a series of separatist laws that were passed over the past year after Dodik was indicted for defying decisions of Bosnia's international peace envoy and the constitutional court.

The sanctions against Dodik, initially introduced in 2017 and later expanded in 2022, had frozen his assets under US jurisdiction and prohibited American entities from engaging in transactions with him.

Dodik, a nationalist leader who has repeatedly challenged Bosnia’s state institutions and advocated greater autonomy for Republika Srpska, had long dismissed the US sanctions as politically motivated.

Following the announcement, he stated that the move was “a correction of an unjust decision”, adding that it would “open the door for renewed dialogue with Western partners”. 

The US Embassy in Sarajevo confirmed the decision but stated that Washington would continue to closely monitor political developments in Republika Srpska.

“The United States remains committed to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and Euro-Atlantic path,” the embassy said in a statement.

Dodik has been a dominant figure in Bosnian politics for more than two decades and is a key ally of Serbia and Russia in the region. The lifting of sanctions is expected to ease tensions between Republika Srpska and Western diplomatic missions, though the US has maintained restrictions on several other officials accused of obstructing Bosnia’s governance framework.