Serbia delivers two more protest notes to Croatia

Serbia delivers two more protest notes to Croatia

But the Serbian MFA announced in a statement that the protest notes were "submitted in a regular way" which "formally confirmed the delivery."

The Serbian government said on its website that one of the notes "expressed a sharp protest against the decision of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Croatia revoking the first instance conviction for committing a war crime against civilians, in particular against Serbian civilians in Osijek, against Branimir Glavas and others, returning the case to the first instance court for retrial."

The ministry "considers the decision of the Supreme Court inexplicable both in legal and moral terms and that it is aimed directly against the Serbian people."

The consequences of the judgment further complicate and aggravate the situation for the Serbian people in Croatia, it stated.

Also, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs considers that the abolition of the verdict against Branimir Glavas is a clear policy of Croatia to rehabilitate not only the fascist NDH, but also criminals from the last war.

"Such actions of the Croatian judiciary send a message that it is acceptable and normal to commit crimes against Serbs with no punishment, which in addition to the permanent hate speech is an open hunt for Serbs in Croatia," the Serbian MFA said, adding that "such a policy of Croatia has led to an increased number of incidents of violence against members of the Serbian nation."

The Serbian MFA "expects from the Croatian judicial authorities to reopen the procedure for Branimir Glavas and proceed on the basis of Croatian law."

The ministry also expressed "a sharp protest following the unveiling of the monument to Miro Baresic in Drage."

The MFA "believes that the erection of a monument to a convicted terrorist who perfidiously murdered the Yugoslav ambassador to Sweden Vladimir Rolovic is an inappropriate and uncivilised act for which there is no precedent in modern Europe," the Serbian government's website said.

"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expects the Croatian government to unequivocally distance itself from the glorification of the convicted terrorist and murderer of the ambassador Rolovic and thus show that it does not support terrorism," the statement said, adding that the Republic of Serbia "expects this shameful monument to be removed."

In previous weeks, Serbia first sent a protest note to Croatia over the annulment of the Stepinac verdict, to which Zagreb reacted strongly.

Serbia then sent another note, over incidents in the town of Srb in Croatia.

Croatia responded by a protest note of its own, accusing Serbian authorities of using the language of "Greater Serbia policy from the 1990s."

Previously, the Serbian ambassador in Zagreb refused to accept Croatia's protest note "due to its insulting content."