Bosnia and Herzegovina's Defense Minister Zukan Helez refused to grant permission for a Hungarian military aircraft carrying Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, to land at Banja Luka Airport, according to a report bythe Bosnian news site n1info.ba.
The politician justified his decision by saying that Hungary had not provided a proper explanation as to why the foreign minister was arriving on a military plane. He also said that "Viktor Orbán and Péter Szijjártó have for years openly supported the activities of the former president of the Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, aimed at undermining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina."
Another news portal points out that members of the Hungarian government have been deliberately avoiding contact with Sarajevo, communicating only with the Serb-majority entity of the country and visiting only Banja Luka. Incidentally, in 2023, the Hungarian Prime Minister arrived in the city on a military plane. The portal commented that it would have been better if Helez or the Bosnian foreign minister had made their concerns known in a diplomatic note sent to the Hungarian Foreign Ministry.
Milorad Dodik had previously announced taht Szijjártó, who was in Belgrade for talks on Wednesday, would be in Banja Luka on Thursday to receive an honorary doctorate from the local university.
We have sent questions to the Hungarian Foreign Ministry about the visit and about their response to the Bosnians' decision. We will update our readers as soon as we receive a reply.
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