Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik has said he expects that Donald Trump's victory in the US presidential election could open the door to a declaration of independence of the Bosnian Serb entity and that its authorities have not scrapped that goal, despite warnings from the West.

In an interview that the Russian pro-government paper Izvestia published on its website on Monday, Dodik said Bosnia and Herzegovina “is disappearing”, so the Serb entity of Republika Srpska would look for ways to strengthen its independence.

“We are waiting for some big powers to say that the (Serb) people have the right to self-determination. We never gave up the need to strengthen our Republika Srpska,” Dodik was quoted as saying, adding that the entity will not miss the chance to protect its status “peacefully”.

If Trump wins the US presidential election, “certain conditions may appear for that to happen,” Dodik said, adding, “It’s wrong to say that it will never happen.”

Dodik visited Tatarstan last week and met with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Asked by Izvestia if a referendum on Republika Srpska’s independence was possible this year already, Dodik said it remained to be seen. Asked about the possibility of the entity joining Serbia after declaring independence from BiH, he said he considered it the right to the unification of all Serbs on the model by which East and West Germany united.

Dodik defended Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and advocated for its continuation, saying that Russia has all rights to Crimea, “which was never Ukrainian.”

“Russia should not leave this issue unsolved. If unsolved issues remain in which Western powers continue to interfere, Russia’s position will weaken. If all issues in strategically important areas are solved, that will strengthen Russia and the whole world,” he was quoted as saying.