Von der Leyen criticizes Mladić's funeral in Belgrade
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the footage of the mass funeral of convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić in Belgrade, Serbia, shocking. According to her, signs of official support for the ceremony and the presence of certain senior Serbian officials contradict the values on which the country's path toward the European Union is based.
As Cyprus Mail reports, European Council President António Costa expressed a similar assessment. Von der Leyen said that such actions demonstrate an inability to confront a dark chapter of modern European history.
Thousands of people at the ceremony
Thousands of people gathered for Mladić's funeral on Monday. He died last week while serving a life sentence for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. Participants in the ceremony carried Serbian flags and portraits of Mladić near a church in a Belgrade suburb, where the service was conducted by Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch Porfirije.
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The coffin, surrounded by armed military personnel and accompanied by a brass band, was carried through the streets as those present chanted Mladić's name. He was buried in a cemetery next to his daughter, who died in 1994. Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić did not attend the funeral, but his son Danilo, Defence Minister Bratislav Gašić and Justice Minister Nenad Vujić were present at the ceremony.
Reaction from the EU and Bosnia and Herzegovina
The UN International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia found Mladić guilty of genocide for his role in the mass killing of around 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica in 1995. He was also convicted over the 43-month siege of Sarajevo, during which around 10,000 people were killed.
European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos last week postponed a trip to Serbia because of, in her words, the glorification of Mladić after his death, including the use of a government plane to transport his body to Serbia. Bosnia and Herzegovina's Foreign Minister Elmedin Konaković said the country would recall from its embassy in Belgrade all staff except the ambassador and consul in protest against Serbia's actions during the funeral, including the military escort for the body and the presence of officials.
