Sarajevo withdraws embassy staff from Serbia after Mladić’s state funeral

Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Foreign Minister, Elmedin Konaković, announced on Monday that almost all diplomatic staff at Bosnia’s Embassy in Serbia would be withdrawn in response to the actions of Serbian officials following the death and burial of convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić.

Konaković said that only the ambassador and consul might remain in Belgrade, since Bosnia’s Presidency decides on their appointment and dismissal, while the rest of the staff would be withdrawn.

According to him, consular services are expected to be transferred to Bosnia and Herzegovina’s embassies in Zagreb and Podgorica. He justified the decision by pointing to developments in Serbia following Mladić’s death, including his funeral, the memorial ceremony and the messages that have appeared in public.

“If I could, I would sever diplomatic relations with Serbia today. What I can do is work to reduce relations to the lowest possible level,” Konaković said.

He said he “was not surprised” by the presence of Republika Srpska officials at Mladić’s funeral in Belgrade and announced that he would seek sanctions “through all channels” against the individuals who took part in the ceremony, including Bosnia Presidency member Željka Cvijanović.

The Bosnian foreign minister said that the “latest alarm” was the message “Towards Potočari,” displayed during a Crvena Zvezda match, arguing that such events represent a continuation of the glorification of war crimes and their perpetrators.

During the derby between Crvena Zvezda and Partizan on September 6, fans in the north stand of the “Rajko Mitić” stadium displayed a large portrait of Mladić bearing the inscription: “Towards Potočari.”

His portrait remained on display in the north stand throughout the match.

Konaković also announced a diplomatic offensive toward the European Union and other international partners. He said a series of diplomatic notes and letters would be sent, calling for a clear response to Serbia’s stance toward war crimes established by court rulings.

According to him, Bosnia will no longer respond passively to attempts to revise the facts surrounding war crimes and will make more intensive use of diplomatic channels to present, as he put it, the truth about the events of the recent war.

Who from Bosnia attended Mladić’s funeral?

The highest-ranking officials of Bosnia’s Serb entity, Republika Srpska, attended Mladić’s funeral ceremony in Belgrade.

They included Bosnia Presidency member Željka Cvijanović; Republika Srpska President Siniša Karan; Prime Minister Savo Minić; Speaker of the Republika Srpska Assembly Nenad Stevandić; and several ministers from the entity’s government.

Milorad Dodik, president of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats, also paid tribute to Mladić, as did Banja Luka Mayor Draško Stanivuković and representatives of the opposition Serb Democratic Party, Branko Blanuša and Marinko Božović.

International warnings over the glorification of Mladić

The Delegation of the European Union to Bosnia and Herzegovina warned on September 7 that “any glorification of war criminals, denial of genocide and revisionism runs counter to the most fundamental European values and has no place either in the EU or in countries that are candidates for membership.”

U.S. senators Jeanne Shaheen, Chuck Grassley and Keith Self had earlier also reacted to the funeral ceremony with military and state honors, calling on the authorities in Serbia and Republika Srpska to distance themselves from the ceremony.

“Ratko Mladić was a war criminal and the architect of the genocide in Srebrenica, where more than 8,000 Bosniak men and boys were killed,” the senators said in a joint statement.

They warned that his glorification would desecrate the memory of the victims and serve as a test of Serbia’s and Republika Srpska’s willingness to break with the legacy of war crimes.

European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos, meanwhile, canceled a planned visit to Serbia, saying that glorifying a person convicted of war crimes and genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina was incompatible with the values underpinning the European path.

Mladić, the former commander of the Army of Republika Srpska, whom the Hague Tribunal convicted of genocide and other war crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina, was buried in Belgrade on Monday, September 7, with military and state honors.

On September 5, a memorial ceremony for Mladić was also held at the Serbian Army House in Belgrade. Among those attending were Serbia’s Justice Minister Nenad Vujić and Republika Srpska President Siniša Karan.

In the days following Mladić’s death, gatherings in his memory were organized in several cities in Serbia and in the Republika Srpska entity.

The largest gathering was held in Banja Luka on September 1.

In the narratives promoted by some media outlets in Belgrade and Banja Luka, Mladić has been portrayed as a victim of the Tribunal, which, they claim, prevented him from receiving treatment in Serbia, while the court ruling against him and the victims of the crimes for which he was convicted have barely been mentioned. /RFE