By Kenneth P. Vogel
The Trump administration on Wednesday lifted sanctions on a Serbian nationalist leader who had been accused of undermining a US-brokered peace deal that ended the bloody sectarian war in the Balkans in the 1990s.
The lifting of sanctions on Milorad Dodik, who until this month served as president of a small self-governing territory in Bosnia and Herzegovina called Republika Srpska, was a victory for the politician and for an expensive influence campaign organized on his behalf by some allies of President Trump.
The lifting of sanctions could allow Mr. Dodik, who is still the leader of the ruling party in Srpska and closely allied with Russian President Vladimir V. Putin, to remain influential in the Serb-controlled region, even without a formal role in government.
Sanctions were also lifted against members of Mr. Dodik’s family and inner circle, as well as companies linked to them, some of which had previously been accused by the Treasury Department of being part of his “corrupt patronage network.”
The Treasury Department did not provide an explanation for the lifting of the sanctions in its announcement, while a spokesman declined to comment.
The State Department suggested in a statement that the lifting of sanctions was linked to these moves, saying they “will enable a partnership with the United States, based on shared interests, economic potential, and shared prosperity.”
In a post on social media, Mr. Dodik praised Mr. Trump and his associates for correcting “an injustice committed by the Obama and Biden administrations.”
In recent weeks, senior Trump administration diplomats met with Mr. Dodik's allies, while the State Department praised the Srpska government for appointing an interim president and withdrawing from measures that undermined the peace agreement.
At least some of the meetings and communications with the Trump administration were facilitated by lobbyists and lawyers affiliated with Trump, who were paid about $300,000 a month or more by the Srpska government, according to filings with the Justice Department.
One of the lobbyists, Marc Zell, signed a contract with the Srpska government late last year that provided for his firm to be paid $1 million for one year, with an additional “success fee” for “bringing about the cancellation/termination of all sanctions.”
Mr. Zell did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Mr. Dodik’s case was also taken up by several prominent figures in Trump’s orbit. They included Rudolph W. Giuliani, the former mayor of New York who served as the president’s personal lawyer during his first term; Michael T. Flynn, the retired general who briefly served as national security adviser in Trump’s first White House; Laura Loomer, who has influence with the president; and Rod Blagojevich, the former governor of Illinois who was pardoned by Mr. Trump in February before signing a contract with the government of Srpska the following month for an undisclosed sum.
They portrayed Mr. Dodik as a victim of the same kind of political persecution that Mr. Trump, Mr. Giuliani, Mr. Flynn and Mr. Blagojevich claim to have experienced, as well as a person willing to reach lucrative deals with Washington.
Caroline Wren, a lobbyist whose firm Tactic Global signed a $100,000-a-month contract with the Srpska government, said the lifting of sanctions “sends a clear message to the United Nations and the European Union that the United States will no longer allow unelected bureaucrats to target Christian leaders.”
Ms. Wren, who is close to influential people in Trump's orbit, organized and attended a meeting in August in Montenegro for Mr. Dodik and a deputy with Richard Grenell, Trump's special envoy.
Adnan Cerimagic, an analyst at the European Stability Initiative, a Berlin-based think tank, said the lifting of sanctions could be used by Mr. Dodik and his allies “to strengthen their political position.”
He added that if Washington does not clarify the reasoning behind the lifting of sanctions, “this will be a signal to others in Bosnia and Herzegovina and beyond that engagement with the new Trump administration through lobbying, money and individuals close to the administration can bring results with minimal concessions on their part.”
