Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić honoured convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić at his funeral, while reaching a pre-election alliance with another convicted war criminal, Vojislav Šešelj, Croatian MEP and European Parliament rapporteur for Serbia Tonino Picula said.
Picula made the remarks during a European Parliament debate on the glorification of Ratko Mladić, sharply criticising the way Serbian authorities handled the funeral of the former commander of the Army of Republika Srpska.
“Mladić’s funeral is another event that revealed the policy of official Belgrade. Honouring a war criminal does not only reflect a completely unacceptable attitude toward the tragic recent past, but also the direction in which this government is taking Serbia today. Vučić honoured one war criminal with state honours, while with another, Šešelj, he reached an agreement for a pre-election alliance,” Picula said.
Mladić was convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague of genocide and war crimes. Picula stressed that the European Union must oppose any attempt at historical revisionism and the relativisation of crimes.
“Ratko Mladić was convicted by the international court in The Hague of genocide and war crimes, and for that reason, there must be no silence over the shameful way in which he was honoured,” Picula said, arguing that the EU must actively confront historical revisionism and the relativisation of crimes.
He also questioned whether Serbia’s EU accession negotiations should continue in light of the policies pursued by the authorities in Belgrade.
“If the Serbian authorities are deliberately going astray, the EU must stop going astray in its relations with such a government. It must not turn a blind eye to the fact that Vučić’s Serbia does not belong in the European Union,” Picula said.
He added that although Mladić has been buried, the ideas associated with Greater Serbia and the so-called “Serbian world” have not been buried with him.
Ahead of the European Parliament debate, the European People’s Party (EPP) also condemned the participation of senior Serbian officials in Mladić’s funeral. Serbia’s ruling Serbian Progressive Party is an associate member of the EPP.
The debate on Serbia is expected to continue in October, when two additional sessions are scheduled. Discussions are expected to focus again on Mladić’s funeral, the state of democracy in Serbia and developments surrounding the elections scheduled for October 25.
These issues are also expected to feature in the European Commission’s Serbia report, which is due to be published at the end of October.
Ratko Mladić, the former commander of the Army of Republika Srpska, died in The Hague while serving a life sentence for genocide and war crimes. He was buried on September 7 at Topčider Cemetery in Belgrade.
The funeral ceremony was led by Serbian Patriarch Porfirije, alongside bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church.
Among those who attended to pay tribute to Mladić were Serbian ministers, Republika Srpska leader Milorad Dodik, Serbian President Vučić’s son Danilo Vučić, and Russia’s ambassador to Serbia, Aleksandar Botsan-Kharchenko.
