AssetID: 55976471
Headline: UNCAPTIONED: EU Blasts Serbia Over Plans to Honour Ratko Mladić
Caption: EU Blasts Serbia Over Plans to Honour Ratko Mladić. The European Union has sharply criticised Serbia over plans surrounding the funeral of Ratko Mladić, the Bosnian Serb military commander convicted of genocide and war crimes. EU officials have warned that glorifying Mladić could damage Serbia’s bid to join the bloc, making the funeral a sensitive issue for Belgrade’s European ambitions. EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos described the handling of the funeral as an important test for Serbia’s future EU path. Mladić died last week at the age of 84 while serving a life sentence in a UN detention facility in The Hague. His body was returned to Serbia on a government plane on Thursday. Serbian officials initially suggested that Mladić could receive a state funeral, although President Aleksandar Vučić has since said that the arrangements will be decided by the family. The possibility of senior Serbian officials attending or commemorating Mladić has also alarmed EU governments, even if the event does not formally receive state status. Mladić was convicted over his role in the 1995 Srebrenica massacre and the siege of Sarajevo, and remains a revered figure among some Serbian nationalists. Instructions: THIS VIDEO MUST NOT BE EDITED FOR LENGTH TO COMBINE WITH OTHER CONTENT
Keywords: Current Affairs & Politics,Serbia,Bosnia,massacre,Srebrenica,Sarajevo,death,Ratko Mladić,commander,convicted,prison,The Hague,Marta Kos,tension,European Union,values,democratic principles,butcher,tributes,state funeral,genocide,war crimes
PersonInImage: