Bosnia gives two Serbian diplomats 48 hours to leave
Bosnia and Herzegovina declared two staff members at Serbia's embassy in Sarajevo personae non gratae and gave them 48 hours to leave. Foreign Minister Elmedin Konaković announced the decision amid rising tension after Ratko Mladić's funeral in Belgrade. Sarajevo is also withdrawing most of the staff from its embassy in the Serbian capital.
Geopolitics··Morning
Two embassy officials were given 48 hours
Bosnia and Herzegovina's foreign minister, Elmedin Konaković, declared two staff members at Serbia's embassy in Sarajevo personae non gratae. ANSA and Bosnia's FENA news agency corroborate the decision. FENA identifies them as military attaché Milan Dulanović and Darko Maksimović, an adviser to the representative of Serbia's Security Information Agency. Konaković said their diplomatic identification would be revoked and they had 48 hours to leave. The decision concerns two embassy officials rather than the ambassador.[1], [2]
The decision followed the Mladić funeral
Tension between Sarajevo and Belgrade rose after the funeral in Belgrade of convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić. The attendance of Serbian state and military officials reopened a regional dispute over reconciliation, and Britain separately summoned Serbia's chargé d'affaires over that participation. The expulsion is Bosnia and Herzegovina's own direct bilateral measure. Neither report details a specific act by the two officials cited as grounds for the decision; the stated context is the interstate tension following the funeral.[1], [2]
Sarajevo is also reducing its presence in Belgrade
Bosnia and Herzegovina's foreign ministry also said it would withdraw almost all staff from its embassy in Belgrade. ANSA reports that the plan includes the military attaché and an adviser to a foreign-affairs representative. Sending out two foreign officials and reducing one's own staff abroad do not amount to a complete diplomatic break: neither embassy has been declared closed. The two announced measures affect diplomatic staffing in both capitals. The next observable developments are enforcement of the 48-hour deadline and Serbia's official response.[1], [2]
