Washington, DC -- Congressman Eliot L. Engel (D-NY-17), a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s Subcommittee on Europe, issued the following statement applauding Serbia's arrest of Ratko Mladic, the former Bosnian Serb army chief.  He also cautioned that Serbia must resolve its dispute with Kosovo before it can join the European Union.

“The arrest of General Ratko Mladic is an important, long-awaited step forward for Serbia. Mladic is responsible for the massacre of more than 7,500 Bosnian men and boys in Srebrenica in July 1995, and must be held accountable by the International Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia for these and other crimes against humanity.

“While Mladic's arrest and extradition to The Hague is a key advance for Serbia, one major obstacle still remains before Belgrade can proceed down the path toward European Union membership.  Until it resolves its dispute with now independent Kosovo, Serbia will not be able to enter the EU.  I hope Serbia one day does become an EU member state, but it must not be allowed to do so if it could block future Kosovo membership,” said Rep. Engel.

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