What were Trump operatives doing for pro-Russian politician Dodik in Bosnia?

A New York Times report has raised questions about what two key political operatives for US President Donald Trump were doing visiting pro-Russian politician Milorad Dodik in Bosnia and Herzegovina ahead of parliamentary elections there on Sunday.According to sources cited by the US newspaper, James Blair and Chris LaCivita advised Dodik and were paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for their work.The revelation has triggered a wave of criticism from within the Republican Party. Blair currently runs Trump’s main fundraising organisation, MAGA Inc, while LaCivita is a senior adviser to Trump.Blair, who has previously served as Trump’s deputy chief of staff, and LaCivita have not commented on the visit.Here is what we know so far:Who is Milorad Dodik?The Bosnian Serb is a pro-Russian politician in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He last met Russian President Vladimir Putin on September 29 in Moscow in a notably cordial meeting, just five days before Bosnia and Herzegovina’s general election.Last November, the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina – the country’s highest – upheld a ban on Dodik from formally running in this year’s October 4 elections, after a Sarajevo court convicted him of refusi...