Strengthening of Russian soft power in BiH: 'Russian world' in Republic of Srpska

Documentary films produced by the Republika Srpska (RS) Cinematheque were shown in Moscow for the previous three days, all within the framework of the cultural cooperation that this entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina is trying to establish with Russia.

The screenings were organized by the Representation of the RS in Russia on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Republika Srpska Cinematheque, which was founded by the decision of the Entity Government at the beginning of 2009, as an institution of special interest. It is the legal successor of the Public Film Company of the Republic of Srpska "Srna Film", founded in 1992.

These are war-themed films that were shot from 1992 to 2022, and refer to events in the past war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The films are shown at the Alexander Solzhenitsyn Home of Russians Abroad in Moscow.

Who is funding?
The projections were financed by the representative office of Republika Srpska in Russia.

Duško Perović, director of the Radio Free Europe (RSE) Representative Office, says that they financed the screenings in order to "give our people a little exposure to the world." He also points out that "given the good experiences from before" they decided to do it again.

"We have a great response, I must say. We have invitations from all over, and maybe we will repeat it in other (Russian) cities, as far as our funds allow, since we are a little limited, because it is all financed by the Representation," said Perović about the film screenings in Russia.

The Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republika Srpska did not respond to RSE's inquiry as to what forms of cooperation exist in the field of culture between the Republika Srpska and Russia, and whether there are agreements on cultural cooperation, nor what are its goals.

Analysts point out that through cultural cooperation, entity authorities and their structures want to strengthen ties with Russia, creating the impression of a "unique cultural identity and cultural space", but also for Russia to present itself as a friend and protector of Republika Srpska.

As part of the promotion of Russian culture in the Republika Srpska, buildings are being built that serve as religious and cultural objects.
Thus, since 2018, a Russian-Serbian temple with a cultural center has been built in Banja Luka. It covers 6,500 square meters in the wider city center, and according to announcements, the Russian language and other contents should be studied there.
During a tour of the construction site in June of this year, Milorad Dodik, the president of B&H. of the entity, told reporters that entity institutions are helping the construction of the temple, and that 20 million marks (10 million euros) had been invested in it by then.
About twenty kilometers north of Doboj is the village of Ritešići, where there is a monastery of the Holy Matrona of Moscow, the construction of which was started ten years ago at the initiative of the local Association of Serbian-Russian Friendship and Unity of the Orthodox Peoples.
Opposite the monastery is an unfinished building that should be a Serbian-Russian spiritual center as part of an ethno-village built by the same association.

What is known about movies?
Snježan Lalović, director of the RS Cinematheque based in Pale, not far from Sarajevo, says that the films deal with war and post-war themes, but that "in principle, these are anti-war films".

"They don't glorify any army. They don't glorify political or military leaders. They talk about the tragic consequences of the war that affected the population," Lalović explained to RSE.

On the official website of the House of Russians Abroad "Aleksandar Solzhenitsyn" there are short descriptions of the films shown.

"How I spent my summer" is a short film from 1992. It is said that the film is a clip from an essay for children who "tell with tears in their eyes how they spent the summer and share their impressions".

"Primer" filmed in 2001 concerns "the problem of correcting the content of history textbooks in BiH and events, their interpretation and falsification".

The film "New Exodus" shot in 1996 is said to be about "the tragedy of the mass exodus of Serbs who were forced to leave their homes after the signing of the Dayton Agreement". It is also added that the film won a gold medal at the Belgrade Short Film and Documentary Film Festival in 1996.

Documentary films from the Republic of Srpska were previously shown in Russia in 2018, as part of the "Days of the Republic of Srpska in Saint Petersburg" event, under the auspices of the Government of the RS. Then, as part of the manifestation, exhibitions were held, plays were performed and literary works from this entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina were presented.

Days of Russian films for children at the RS Cinematheque
A month earlier, on September 24, the Kinoteka RS in Pale hosted screenings of Russian films for children "Childhood Fairy Tales". The patrons were the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Serbian branch of the "International Foundation for the Spiritual Unity of Nations".

This foundation was established in 1995 by the Russian Orthodox Church, "with the blessing of His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, Alexy II," according to the official website of the foundation.

In the goals of the foundation's work, it is emphasized that it was founded "with the aim of strengthening the bonds of spiritual brotherhood of peoples who profess Orthodoxy".

The statement of the director of the festival, producer Filip Kudrjašov, was also published on the official website of the Cinematheque RS.

"Imagine. A child gets to know Russia, sitting in a hall, with Russia speaking to him from the screen in the form of a feature film, animation or documentary. Such an attitude towards the viewer will surely return with grateful emotions," said Kudryashov.

These are just some of the examples of cultural cooperation between Russia and Republika Srpska, which also includes visiting museums and theaters, and which are accompanied by meetings of representatives of institutions and cultural institutions and foundations, which are often attended by representatives of the Russian Embassy in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Cooperation at a high level
Entity Minister of Education and Culture Željka Stojičić visited Russia in June, on the occasion of the International Forum of Ministers of Education "Shaping the Future" in Kazan. The event was organized by the Russian Ministry of Education.

Russian language in education in RS
As of this school year, the possibility of learning Russian as an additional foreign language has been introduced in 29 more primary schools, out of a total of around 200, in the Republic of Srpska.
According to the data of the Ministry of Education and Culture, the Russian language was present in 52 primary and 39 secondary schools in the RS until this school year.
At the Faculty of Philosophy in East Sarajevo, the Center for Open Education in Russian was launched in the middle of the year. The project was implemented with the support of the Ministry of Education of Russia and the Tula State Pedagogical University (TSPU) named after Leo Tolstoy.

In the announcement of the ministry, it was pointed out that "cooperation will be continued with the aim of strengthening the strategic partnership between the Russian Federation and Republika Srpska".
At the end of last year, a meeting was held in the Ministry of Education with representatives of the Russian Embassy in charge of culture, where there was also a delegation of the National Drama Theater Alexandrinsky from Saint Petersburg.

In addition, the director of the National Theater of the Republika Srpska, Dijana Grbić, spent several days in Russia during September, as part of the international conference "Development of the mother tongue as an element of cultural identity of successful world practice".
Theater visits from Russia to the RS, and vice versa, have also been announced.

The 'Russian world' and the Serbian variant
Peter Mandaville, senior advisor of the American Institute for Peace, told Radio Free Europe (RSE) that Russia through the Serbian Orthodox Church, which is closely connected with the Russian Orthodox Church, has become an important part of Vladimir Putin's foreign policy tool.
"Whose hallmark is (Vladimir Putin's) worldview, his overall project, the idea of 'Russian Peace', the Russian world," Mandaville explains.
Back in 2002, the Center of the Russian Foundation "Russian Peace" was opened in Banja Luka as part of the National and University Library of the RS, with the aim of promoting the Russian langThe "Russian Peace" Foundation was founded in 2007 by the decision of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The foundation's official website states that it is "the most important tool for the promotion of peace efforts of the Russian state in the international arena, strengthening the role of civil society structures aimed at maintaining peace and stability in the country and the world.
Mandaville explains that "today it is possible to very clearly identify the Serbian variant of it".
"The Serbian world project that is not fully one hundred percent aligned with the Russian concept of the world, but many of its features are shared in terms of a kind of pan-Slavic identity, the language issue, but also other cultural aspects, such as a common Orthodox Christian identity," said a senior advisor to Religion and Inclusive Societies of the American Institute of Peace.
He believes that these two projects, even if they are not completely equal to each other, "work harmoniously together and allow a certain mutual enrichment on the ground in terms of political influence".
"The fact that you have the influences of the Serbian Orthodox Church coming from Belgrade, religious leaders and personalities and certain types of information, narratives, propaganda that are brought into the Republika Srpska, which help to strengthen the identity of members of local communities, in ways that bring them closer to the wider Serbian and wider , Moscow's worldview, which of course then has an impact on broader issues and discussions that are being conducted within Bosnia about the future geopolitical layout of this country," explains Mandaville.
The political narrative pushed by politicians from Republika Srpska, as well as Serbia, about Russia as "the most important strategic partner", must be further deepened by other means, Aleksandar Popov, director of the Center for Regionalism from Novi Sad, points out for RSE.
"This political and material factor must be accompanied by everything else that can influence people to deepen that Russophilism that has been present among the Serbs in the environment for a long time. But now it is especially potentiated," Popov points out.
According to him, this is a way to strengthen Russia in the region.
"That is the basic goal, which is accompanied by the so-called 'hybrid war', and that takes place through the media," Popov believes.uage and Russian culture.

Along with the promotion of Russian culture and language, and with the political and economic lobbying of Russian interests in Bosnia and Herzegovina, various associations are formed as promoters of the Russian idea.

One of them is the association of Serbian-Russian friendship "Bratstvo", whose website states that the focus of their work is the promotion of the Russian language, and the deepening of Serbian-Russian cooperation in the field of education and science, economic cooperation, as well as connecting students through studying in Russia. .

From this Association, after they promised to give a statement to RSE about the goals of their activities and sources of funding, they later did not respond to calls.

This association also exists in East Sarajevo, Doboj and Rogatica.

In addition to them, numerous similar associations operate with greater or lesser intensity, such as the "Serbian-Russian Bridge" in Banja Luka and East Sarajevo, and the Serbian Movement "Vladimir Putin" in East Sarajevo.

In Bijeljina, the Association of Serbian-Russian Friendship "Zavet" operates, while in Banja Luka there is also the Russian Center of the Foundation "Ruski Mir", and the Russian Cultural Center, as well as the Center of Russian Language and Culture "Vozroždenija".

Apart from them, there are also numerous associations from Serbia that have activities in the territory of Republika Srpska, such as "Society of Russian-Serbian Friendship in Moscow", "Society of Serbian-Russian Friendship in Belgrade", "Academy of Slavic Studies in Moscow", STP "Riznica", Educational and patriotic organization "Stâg" Moscow.

According to data from the Statistical Office of the Republic of Srpska from 2013, in this BiH less than two hundred Russians live in the entity.