EU says glorifying war criminals and denying genocide have no place in Europe

The European Union has delivered a blunt message after the death of Ratko Mladić: glorifying war criminals, denying genocide and rewriting the past have no place in the bloc or in countries seeking to join it.

European Commission spokesperson Christian Wigand said Mladić was a convicted war criminal responsible for war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. He died while serving a life sentence for genocide and crimes against humanity in Srebrenica.

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Any glorification of war criminals, genocide denial and revisionism contradict the most fundamental European values and have no place in the EU or in EU candidate countries.

The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia sentenced Mladić to life in prison in 2017, describing his crimes as among the most heinous known to humanity, Wigand said in a written statement published by the European External Action Service. EU Ambassador to Serbia Andreas von Beckerath also shared the statement.

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Reconciliation and good-neighbourly relations in the region remain of key importance for building a common future.

Wigand said the armed conflicts in the Western Balkans during the 1990s represented some of the darkest moments in Europe's recent history. Reconciliation and good-neighbourly relations, he said, remain essential to building a common future in the region.

The EU expressed solidarity with victims, survivors and families affected by war crimes in the former Yugoslavia. It said it would support Western Balkan countries in pursuing reconciliation and regional stability, as well as inclusive solutions to disputes and issues rooted in the region's past, in line with international law. Mladić was due to be buried at Belgrade's Topčider Cemetery.

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We express solidarity with all victims, survivors and their families who suffered from war crimes in the countries of the former Yugoslavia.