
Albania has condemned the honors paid in Serbia to Ratko Mladic, the former Bosnian Serb commander convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
In a reaction on the social network X, the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Ferit Hoxha, said that Albania joins the European Union and its leaders in condemning the way Mladic has been honored in Serbia.
The Minister stressed that Albania's stance on the glorification of war criminals, genocide denial and historical revisionism remains unchanged. According to him, these stances contradict European values and harm the process of reconciliation, cooperation and good neighborliness in the Western Balkans.
Hoxha also underlined that such acts “insult victims and survivors” and erode trust between communities and people.
“Albania condemns the glorification of Ratko Mladic, a convicted war criminal who died while serving a life sentence for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. We join the European Union, its leaders and all those who have rightly condemned the way he was honored in Serbia.
Our position has been clear and remains consistent: the glorification of convicted war criminals, the denial of genocide and historical revisionism contradict the values on which the European project is built and undermine the spirit of reconciliation, cooperation and good neighborly relations that are essential for a common future in the Western Balkans.
Such acts do more harm than simply reopening the wounds of the past. They insult victims and survivors, and erode trust between communities and people.
Albania strongly believes that true reconciliation can only be built on truth, accountability, respect for victims and survivors, and a shared commitment to ensure that the crimes of the past are never repeated.
"Our region has a future to build together. This future must be European: rooted in peace, reconciliation, cooperation, mutual respect and unwavering respect for the memory of those who suffered the horrors of war," he writes.