Top officials from the European Union expressed surprise on Tuesday following Serbia’s grand funeral for Ratko Mladic, a Bosnian Serb general who passed away while serving a life sentence for war crimes. This event raised concerns about Serbia’s eligibility for EU membership. Mladic was laid to rest in Belgrade with military honors, where the Serbian Orthodox Church’s Patriarch Porfirije led the funeral service, and Serbian army soldiers carried his flag-draped coffin.

Numerous Serbian government ministers attended the service for Mladic, infamously known as the “Butcher of Bosnia” and convicted of perpetrating Europe’s first genocide post-World War II. Despite his atrocities, Mladic remains a revered figure among many Serbs. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa criticized the official support and the presence of senior Serbian officials at the funeral as a failure to address Europe’s dark past and contradicted Serbia’s EU aspirations.

Serbia’s Justice Minister Nenad Vujic participated in the funeral alongside Mladic’s family, emphasizing that the authorities ensured order during the event. Mladic was found guilty by the United Nations of genocide for his involvement in the 1995 Srebrenica massacre and the 43-month siege of Sarajevo, resulting in thousands of deaths.

British officials summoned Serbia’s charge d’affaires to denounce the involvement of Serbian state and military officials in Mladic’s funeral, emphasizing that glorifying a war criminal undermines reconciliation and regional stability in the Western Balkans. European Union Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos warned that the funeral would test Belgrade’s commitment to EU values, leading to the cancellation of her upcoming visit to Serbia.

Serbia’s EU membership prospects were already in jeopardy due to concerns over democratic regression and election irregularities. The funeral further strained relations, potentially jeopardizing Serbia’s access to significant EU funds. Despite close ties between President Aleksandar Vucic’s nationalist-populist SNS party and the European People’s Party, the EPP has faced criticism for its support of Vucic amidst the Mladic controversy.

As the EU prepares to release its annual enlargement report, the fallout from Mladic’s funeral could hinder Serbia’s progress towards EU membership. The EPP’s history of supporting controversial leaders, like Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, underscores the challenges of balancing political alliances within the EU.