DistantNews
Support us
🇭🇷 Croatia /Conflict & Security

NATO speaks after Ratko Mladić’s funeral: “He was responsible for horrific crimes against civilians”

From Večernji List · () Croatian

Translated from Croatian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Newswire Unnamed sources Outcome reported
  • Ratko Mladić was buried in a family grave at Belgrade’s Topčider Cemetery, with religious rites and military honors, as thousands joined the procession.
  • A NATO official said Mladić was responsible for horrific crimes against civilians, including the killing of thousands of Bosnian men and boys in Srebrenica in 1995.
  • NATO said it would not allow a new security vacuum to emerge in the strategically important Western Balkans.

Ratko Mladić was buried Monday in a family grave at Belgrade’s Topčider Cemetery, with church rites and military honors. Thousands of people joined the procession and funeral, including some Serbian government ministers and officials from Republika Srpska.

The judgment of the United Nations criminal tribunal against Ratko Mladić helped uphold the rule of law and bring those responsible for war crimes to justice. General Mladić was responsible for horrific crimes against civilians, including the killing of thousands of Bosnian men and boys in Srebrenica in 1995.

· Anonymous NATO officialThe official described Mladić’s responsibility for war crimes while responding to questions about his funeral.

The funeral drew a sharp response from NATO. A NATO official, speaking anonymously in response to a question from Croatia’s Hina news agency, said the United Nations criminal tribunal’s judgment against Mladić had helped uphold the rule of law and bring those responsible for war crimes to justice.

“General Mladić was responsible for horrific crimes against civilians, including the killing of thousands of Bosnian men and boys in Srebrenica in 1995,” the official said. The official did not directly comment on the funeral itself, but emphasized NATO’s role in the region after the wars of the 1990s.

NATO helped end one of the darkest chapters in Europe’s history and has contributed to building lasting security in the Western Balkans for more than 20 years.

· Anonymous NATO officialThe statement highlighted NATO’s account of its role in the region.

“NATO helped end one of the darkest chapters in Europe’s history and has contributed to building lasting security in the Western Balkans for more than 20 years,” the official said. The Western Balkans, the official added, remains strategically important to the alliance. “Our commitment to regional stability is firm, and we will not allow a security vacuum to emerge again.”

The Western Balkans is a region of strategic importance to our alliance. Our commitment to regional stability is firm, and we will not allow a security vacuum to emerge again.

· Anonymous NATO officialThe official stressed NATO’s continuing focus on stability in the Western Balkans.
About this summary

Originally published by Večernji List in Croatian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog