Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, left, listens Bosnian Serb official Milorad Dodik, who is the member of Bosnia's multi-ethnic presidency during a press conference after their talks in the capital Sarajevo, Bosnia, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020. Lavrov is on a two-day visit to Bosnia. (AP Photo/Kemal Softic)Bosnian Serb member of the tripartite Presidency of Bosnia Milorad Dodik, right, welcomes Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the start of their meeting in the capital Sarajevo, Bosnia, Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020. Lavrov is on a two-day visit to Bosnia. Both are wearing face masks to curb the spread of COVID-19. (AP Photo/Kemal Softic)Bosnian Serb member of the tripartite Presidency of Bosnia Milorad Dodik, second right, listens to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, second left, during their meeting in the capital Sarajevo, Bosnia, Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020. Bosnias Muslim and Croat representatives in the countrys three-member presidency have boycotted a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in a major snub to Moscows top diplomat. On his second day of the two-day visit to Bosnia on Tuesday, Lavrov was due to hold talks with all three presidency members, including Sefik Dzaferovic, a Muslim, and Zeljko Komsic, a Croat, but only the Serb member, Milorad Dodik. attended the meeting. (AP Photo/Kemal Softic)
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Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, left, listens Bosnian Serb official Milorad Dodik, who is the member of Bosnia's multi-ethnic presidency during a press conference after their talks in the capital Sarajevo, Bosnia, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020. Lavrov is on a two-day visit to Bosnia. (AP Photo/Kemal Softic)
MOSCOW – Russia said Saturday it will return an Orthodox icon presented to the Russian foreign minister in Bosnia, a gift that has triggered a protest from Ukraine.
The presiding Serb member of Bosnia’s three-member presidency, Milorad Dodik, gave the icon to Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov when he visited Sarajevo earlier this week. The icon, which was said to be 300 years old, is believed to originate from eastern Ukraine, where Russia-backed rebels have fought Ukrainian troops in a six-year conflict.
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The Ukrainian Embassy in Sarajevo has requested information on how the Bosnian Serb leader came to possess the icon, noting that the failure to provide the information would mean Bosnia is supporting Russia’s “aggressive policy and military actions’’ in eastern Ukraine. Dozens of Serbs have fought alongside the pro-Russia rebels in the conflict, which started in 2014.
On Saturday, Russia's Foreign Ministry said the icon would be returned to Bosnia pending an Interpol probe to clarify its origins.
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