Overview
- The body of Ratko Mladic was flown to Belgrade and given a public funeral with military honors on Monday, September 7, with thousands of mourners and veterans attending.
- Mladic died on August 27 in a UN detention facility in The Hague while serving a life sentence for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity handed down by the Hague tribunal in 2017.
- EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos canceled a planned visit to Serbia and Western lawmakers publicly urged Belgrade and Republika Srpska authorities to distance themselves from the funeral displays.
- UN judges and Dutch authorities have opened inquiries into the circumstances of his death, and international criticism has focused on the Serbian government's role in repatriation and public honors.
- The funeral and public glorification—including large tifos by Red Star Belgrade fans and veterans’ rallies—underscore deep divisions over wartime memory in Serbia and could complicate Serbia’s stalled EU accession process.