Bosnian Foreign Minister Elmedin Konakovic has called for European Union sanctions targeting Serbia’s leadership, including President Aleksandar Vucic. According to Konakovic, the EU should consider implementing targeted sanctions and other suitable measures against Serbia and its political authorities.
The urgency of this demand stems from Serbia’s manner in which it handled the passing of former General Ratko Mladic, particularly the military honors accorded during his burial in Belgrade. This action has drawn severe criticism from Brussels. Mladic had been sentenced to life imprisonment by the UN War Crimes Tribunal in 2017. His charges included the prolonged siege of Bosnia’s capital, Sarajevo, and the genocide committed in the eastern Bosnian “UN safe area” of Srebrenica.
Konakovic specifically held Vucic accountable for allowing Serbia to glorify these crimes. He emphasized that Vucic not only authorized the delegation of a government plane to transport Mladic’s body back to Serbia but went further. The minister noted that a military honor guard paid a salute to Mladic’s remains, which occurred under the direct command of Vucic, who serves as the supreme commander of the Serbian forces. Konakovic stressed that these actions were a direct affront to “the heart of democratic Europe.”
Konakovic asserted that Serbia has become a significant threat to regional stability, and decisive consequences are necessary. He argued that a nation that glorifies war crimes and denies genocide cannot credibly pursue EU membership while simultaneously dismissing the foundational values of the European project.
Therefore, Sarajevo expects the EU to utilize its “entire political toolkit” to clearly and unambiguously tackle the denial of genocide and the glorification of war crimes. The minister cautioned that a failure by the European institutions to react to the alarming situation in Serbia could cast questions on the European orientation of Bosnia itself. Given that Bosnia’s foreign and security policy is entirely aligned with the EU, Konakovic remarked that if European institutions remain inactive regarding the situation in Serbia, “we would have every reason to question: what kind of politics are we actually oriented toward-and for what purpose?”
