Pusic says Mihailovic's rehabilitation bad decision for Serbia

The rehabilitation of World War II criminal Dragoljub Draza Mihailovic is a bad decision for Serbia, for its relations with Croatia, and will have repercussions on the relations in the region, but Croatia will not send a diplomatic note to Serbia, Foreign Minister Vesna Pusic.

Speaking to the press in Dubrovnik, she said she was glad that senior Serbian officials, notably Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic and Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic, had distanced themselves from the whole case.

"I wouldn't like to be in their shoes. That's quite tragic for the country's reputation and political culture," Pusic said, adding that Croatia did not need to change the opinion that Mihailovic had been a fascist war criminal.

She said the Serbian High Court's decision on Thursday to rehabilitate Mihailovic would cause rifts in Serbian society and complicate regional relations. "This complicates relations, no doubt about it. On Monday there's a working breakfast as part of the usual framework before a Foreign Affairs Council meeting on Serbia as a country negotiating with the EU. In that context, it's a subject Serbia will have to deal with."

Asked if Croatia would block Serbia's path towards EU membership, Pusic said "a Serbian court did that. The court harmed them with this decision, we have no reason to do that, it's a problem they have to deal with. Why would Croatia block (Serbia)? Denmark, the Netherlands, any other country certainly, and they themselves know that they can't join the EU with fascist symbols and rehabilitations."

Pusic dismissed allegations that Mihailovic's rehabilitation would enable the rehabilitation of other war criminals.

Pusic said she expected Australia to extradite Dragan Vasiljkovic soon, after which a trial should be launched in line with the law.

She also commented on President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic's visit to Jasenovac and Bleiburg outside the official commemoration protocols. "As for Jasenovac, I don't understand why she didn't come, why she wasn't there. As for Bleiburg, that's a little bit clearer to me because in the meantime this has been turned into some sort of rehabilitation of Nazism and Ustashism. I wouldn't go at all, but if one is going, it's better to go without political iconography."

(Hina) ha

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