EU Commissioner Cancels Serbia Visit Over Planned Honors for Ratko Mladić

EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos announced on Friday that she would not travel to Serbia as scheduled, arguing that the planned funeral for former Bosnian Serb army commander Ratko Mladić constitutes "glorification" incompatible with European Union values. Kos said the return of Mladić’s remains to Belgrade "reminds Europe of the darkest pages in our recent history."

Mladić, sentenced in 2017 to life imprisonment for genocide, crimes against humanity and other war crimes, was flown to Belgrade on a Serbian government aircraft on Thursday. His coffin was wrapped in the national flag and escorted by soldiers, while flares were lit as the convoy passed through the city. Serbia’s justice minister accompanied the plane, and the family announced a military commemoration on Saturday followed by a burial with full state honors on Monday.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić dismissed Kos’s remarks as "very short but stupid" and suggested that authorities could ban attendees from the funeral. He said he had spoken with Mladić’s family and hoped the ceremony would proceed "in a dignified way."

Other European officials also condemned the planned honors. Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Michael O’Flaherty called the public glorification of Mladić "illegal" and not protected speech. Belgium’s foreign minister described granting funeral honors as "shameful and disrespectful for the victims." The incident has intensified calls for the European People’s Party to distance itself from Vučić’s Serbian Progressive Party.

Serbia’s EU accession process remains stalled amid concerns over democratic backsliding and the government’s stance on international sanctions.