The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina Elmedin Konaković met on September 23, 2026, on the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, with the Under-Secretary of the United Nations and Special Adviser to the Secretary-General of the United Nations for the Prevention of Genocide Chalok Beyani.
Minister Konaković warmly greeted Undersecretary Beyani, emphasizing the indispensable importance of his mandate in the global architecture of peace, protection of human rights and prevention of genocide and other grave international crimes.
During the conversation, it was emphasized that Bosnia and Herzegovina has a deep and unique historical relationship with the Office of the Special Adviser for the Prevention of Genocide, which stems from the painful experiences of the aggression against Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1992 to 1995 and the genocide committed in Srebrenica.
Minister Konaković pointed out that Bosnia and Herzegovina remains an unwavering partner of the United Nations in advocating the principle of “Never again”, through active cultivation of the culture of memory, support for transitional justice and strengthening of institutional resilience. He expressed his gratitude to Special Adviser Beyani for his principled stance, quick reaction and recent unequivocal condemnation of public glorification and elements of support at the state level during the funeral in Serbia of the legally convicted war criminal for genocide Ratko Mladić. He pointed out that the presence of officials and the use of state or institutional honors during the send-off of a person legally convicted of the most serious violations of international humanitarian law represents a dangerous precedent and a blow to regional stability. He warned that the way of organization and institutional support gave this event the character of a state funeral. The minister also pointed to the fact that a certain number of persons convicted or accused of war crimes committed during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina have been staying in Serbia for years, beyond the reach of the judicial institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Minister Konaković then emphasized that the systematic denial of genocide, the revision of historically and judicially established facts, as well as the public glorification of war criminals, are not only issues of dealing with the past. Such practices represent risk factors and warnings for the possible recurrence of conflicts and mass crimes. He added that in the Western Balkans they simultaneously send a message of impunity, further traumatize the survivors and victims’ families, and undermine the processes of reconciliation, building trust and lasting peace. He said that Bosnia and Herzegovina remains firmly committed to international criminal justice, including the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court regarding the crime of genocide, as well as other international and national mechanisms for prosecuting genocide and other grave international crimes. The Minister proposed that the Office of the Special Adviser, as well as the broader United Nations system, pay additional attention to growing extremism, nationalist rhetoric, hate speech, denial of genocide and the glorification of legally convicted war criminals in reports submitted to the UN Security Council and the General Assembly.
