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The heads of the European Commission and the European Council sharply criticize Serbia over the funeral of Ratko Mladić
2026-09-08 11:56:00 / BOTA
The heads of the EU's two main institutions have condemned the presence of senior Serbian officials at the funeral of the convicted war criminal, in a joint statement published simultaneously in X on Tuesday morning.
“The images from Ratko Mladić’s funeral yesterday in Belgrade were shocking. Ratko Mladić was a convicted war criminal. He was responsible for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa wrote in X.
Ratko Mladic, known as the Butcher of Bosnia, died in late August at the age of 84 in a UN detention center in The Hague. The Bosnian Serb had served in the Army of Republika Srpska with the rank of colonel general during the Yugoslav Wars.
After his death, his body was transported by state plane to Belgrade, given an honor guard by the Serbian military and various security forces, and commemorated by the public broadcaster and the Serbian Orthodox Church. His coffin was draped in a Serbian flag.
On Friday, the glorification of the war criminal sparked outrage from senior EU officials, national ministers and diplomats, with Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos warning that the funeral would be an “important test” for Serbia’s bid for membership.
" He died while serving a life sentence for the Srebrenica genocide and other crimes. The elements of official support and the presence of several senior Serbian officials at the funeral are deeply regrettable ," the post continues.
On Monday, the Commission's chief spokeswoman, Paula Pinho, sparked a public backlash after saying at the daily press conference that " we had heard that a funeral with state honors was planned, and that did not happen."
“ Five ministers from the Serbian government sat in the front row at the funeral, a convicted war criminal was given military honors and his body was transported on a Serbian government plane ,” wrote the official X account of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Foreign Ministry, calling Pinochet’s statement “ a disgrace to the entire European Union.”
The joint statement by Von der Leyen and Costa appears to cement the EU’s institutional condemnation of Mladić’s glorification, stressing that Serbia’s failure to confront a dark chapter in European history runs counter to the values that underpin EU membership. It also marks a sharp escalation from warning to institutional condemnation.
In July, the Commission tried to revive Serbia's accession bid by bringing the opening of Group 3 back on the table. Eight member states blocked the move, citing concerns about the rule of law and Belgrade's failure to comply with EU sanctions against Russia.
" Everyone can see that, after this disgusting glorification of Mladic, the opening of Group 3 is completely out of the question for the moment ," an EU diplomat told Euronews, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos canceled her planned visit to Serbia, while a Commission spokesperson denied that von der Leyen had ever planned a visit to Serbia.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić called for early parliamentary elections to be held at the end of October.
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