Professor David Pettigrew of Southern Connecticut State University has called on the European Union to take concrete action against Serbia following the involvement of Serbian state officials and religious leaders in the funeral and burial of convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić.
In a letter addressed to the European Commission, Pettigrew expressed “grave concerns” about recent developments in Serbia, arguing that the events surrounding Mladić’s funeral raise serious questions about Serbia’s commitment to the rule of law and the fundamental values enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union.
According to Pettigrew, as many as six Serbian state officials were involved in the funeral arrangements. He said one state official accompanied Mladić’s coffin on the plane, while Serbian state resources were used to facilitate the arrival of the coffin, including the involvement of military personnel who received it.
Pettigrew said the funeral and burial amounted to the glorification of Mladić, who was convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Particular concern was expressed over remarks by Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch Porfirije, who led the funeral. Pettigrew cited reports that the patriarch described Mladić as a soldier and commander who “stood at the head of his people’s army” and said that his name would remain deeply woven into the memory and prayers of a majority of Serbian Orthodox people.
Pettigrew linked the remarks to the broader issue of the glorification of individuals convicted of atrocities committed during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
He also referred to the 1995 Srebrenica genocide and the case of the Scorpions unit, whose killings of Bosniak men and boys were recorded and later used as evidence in proceedings before the ICTY.
The professor further criticized Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić over his opposition to the United Nations General Assembly resolution adopted in May 2024, which designated July 11 as the International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica.
Pettigrew argued that the genocide in Srebrenica has been established in judgments by both the ICTY and the International Court of Justice, and described the Serbian leadership’s approach to the issue as inconsistent with the rule of law.
The letter also invokes findings of the ICTY concerning the involvement of Serbia and Serbian nationals in joint criminal enterprises during the 1992–1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Pettigrew cited ICTY findings concerning efforts to permanently remove non-Serb populations, principally Croats and Bosniaks, from large areas of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
He further connected the wartime concept of a “Greater Serbia” with what he described as the more recent idea of the “Serbian World,” while also drawing parallels with Russia’s concept of the “Russian World.”
Pettigrew said the implications of the Mladić funeral in Belgrade are “wide-reaching and deeply troubling” and called on the EU to respond.
In particular, he urged the European Commission to reassess Serbia’s path toward EU membership unless Belgrade makes a credible commitment to fulfilling its obligations under the EU-Serbia Stabilisation and Association Agreement, including combating genocide denial and the glorification of convicted war criminals.
He also called for the suspension of further EU funding to Serbia and sanctions against Serbian and Republika Srpska officials whom he said played a role in the glorification of Mladić.
“The glorification of Ratko Mladić sends the wrong signal to future generations as it represents the crimes committed as heroic and threatens a repetition of those very crimes,” Pettigrew wrote.
He urged the European Commission to take the issue into account when preparing its next annual progress report on Serbia, expected at the end of October 2026.
Pettigrew also referred to a document submitted to the European Commission on September 20 by the group Kosnica, Registar 145a, which he said addresses the glorification of Mladić in detail.
The letter was also addressed to the group World for Bosnia, which was included in the correspondence, with Pettigrew requesting confirmation of receipt and a response from the European Commission.
With support of ‘World for Bosnia’ initiative represented by Associations from:
Australia (Bosnian Community Council New South Wales – Safet Alispahić)
Belgium (on behalf of For Bosnia Association, Brussels – Adem Pobrić)
Bosnia and Herzegovina (OPTIMISTI 2004 – Satko Mujagić, and Association of Women Victims of War – Bakira Hasečić)
Canada (Institute for Research of Genocide – Emir Ramić)
Croatia (Association of Young Bosniaks and Friends of the City of Rijeka and Primorje-Gorski Kotar County – Mensur Ferhatović)
Denmark (on behalf of the Alliance of five Bosnian associations, SBHUD – Edin Hajder)
Finland (Bosnian Cultural Center and Football Club Bosna – Nedžad Jakupović)
Ireland (Bosnia and Herzegovina Association of Ireland – Mirza Ćatibušić)
Italy (Associazione “Bosna in cuore” – Rome, “Bosnia ed Erzegovina Oltre i Confini” – Piacenza, “Associazione culturale Bosniaca ODV” – Biella, “Associazione Ljiljan” – Piancamuno, “Associazione Nema Problema” – Bologna, “Džemat Biella” – Biella – Fatima Neimarlija)
Luxembourg (Srebrenica Committee Luxembourg – Adnan Halilović)
Netherlands (Association of the Survivors of the Srebrenica Genocide 1995 – Azret Hrustić)
Sweden (BHRF – Alliance of associations of citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina – Adnan Mahmutović)
United Kingdom (Bosnia UK Network, Sabit Jakupović & Srebrenica Genocide Survivors – Mujo Delić)
United States (Patrick McCarthy and Bekir Hodžić, Board Members, Working Group for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ida Sefer, President, Bosnian American Genocide Institute)
