Bosnian citizens’ response to the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine was immediate. In severalcities people came together in spontaneous protests in the streets to condemn the war and show their solidarity. In the capital Sarajevo, protests continued over several weeks. Posters were put up on trees and benches at various locations, still bearing visible scars of the city’s daily shelling during the almost four-year siege, the longest in 20th century European history. Two words were prevalent in these messages: “Sarajevo Understands”.In February 2022, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) was in the midst of one of the most challenging times in its post-war history. Issues ranged from the eruption of the Covid pandemic in 2020 exacerbating the already difcult socio-economic situation, to the infammatory ethno-nationalistic rhetoric and separatist agendas impeding crucial decision-making processes while pushing the country, as seen through the lens of international press, to the verge of breakup.1It was in this atmosphere of fear and uncertainty that citizens woke to the news of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24th. It was as if an icy wind swept through the country. The aggression rekindled the traumatic memory of the outbreak of war in the country in 1992, still narrated as an event occurring practically “overnight”, and ignited fears of interlinked political ramifcations, such as Russia interfering with Bosnian peace and security for the purpose of threatening the regional security order in Europe.