Bosnia Expels Serbian Diplomats Over Ratko Mladic Funeral

Bosnia expelled two Serbian embassy diplomats on September 8 and suspended plans to sign a regional cooperation accord in protest over Belgrade's decision to hold a public funeral for former Bosnian Serb General Ratko Mladic.

Mladic died on August 27 in The Hague, serving a life sentence for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. Thousands attended his funeral in Belgrade on Monday, with government officials among the mourners and the head of Serbia's Orthodox Church presiding. Bosnia's Foreign Minister Elmedin Konakovic stated that military attaché Milan Dulanovic and intelligence adviser Danko Maksimovic had 48 hours to leave the country.

Konakovic also announced Bosnia would abstain from signing a memorandum on good neighborly relations and cooperation of the Western Balkan countries, scheduled for October 1 in Montenegro, stating, "With such a Serbia we will not sign documents on good neighborly relations." He criticized Serbia's handling of Mladic's death and funeral, including a banner displayed at a soccer match showing Mladic pointing towards Srebrenica.

The funeral, which Serbia insisted was not a state event, included military honors and the presence of senior political leaders, prompting condemnation from European Union officials. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa called the images shocking and stated they demonstrated a failure to confront a dark chapter in Europe's history.

Serbia's Justice Minister Nenad Vujic attended the funeral and said authorities helped maintain order. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic described the funeral as an emotional outpouring. In Montenegro, prosecutors opened a case against Metropolitan Metodije of Budimlja-Niksic for inciting national, racial, and religious hatred due to his public praise of Mladic during a service on August 28. Turkey also condemned the funeral, calling it unacceptable and stating it amounted to denying grave crimes.