The European Union said that the old continent has not forgotten its inability to prevent the genocide in Srebrenica, calling on political leaders in the Western Balkans to acknowledge what happened.
This was stated in a joint statement on Saturday issued by the EU High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy Josep Borrell.
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In addition to the Union Commissioner in charge of Neighborhood and Enlargement Policy Oliver Farrelly on the occasion of the 26th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide.
“It is our common duty to never forget the Srebrenica genocide,” the statement said, stressing the need for those involved in the genocide not to go unpunished.
He added, “Western Balkan political leaders should set an example by acknowledging what happened, remembering the victims with respect, and supporting reconciliation by confronting the roots of genocidal hatred.”
The statement stressed that the European Union is a project aimed at overcoming the tragedies of the past and that the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina is within this project.
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Srebrenica massacre
On 11 July 1995, Bosnian civilians from Srebrenica sought protection from Dutch UN soldiers.
This is after the Serbian forces occupied the city, but the Dutch forces handed them back to the Serbian forces.
Serb forces killed more than 8,000 Bosnian men and boys from the city, and only children and women were allowed out.
The Bosnian Serbs buried the dead in mass graves, and after the war ended, Bosnia launched the search for the missing, exhuming the bodies of the dead from the mass graves and determining their identities.
On July 11 of each year, the Bosnian authorities re-bury a group of victims who have been identified in the “Potochari” cemetery.
