Mladic’s Dedication to Strategic Goals

Donia, an expert in history who studied minutes from Republika Srpska Assembly sessions and other documents issued by Serb authorities, said that Mladic worked with dedication on achieving the six strategic goals adopted by the Republika Srpska Assembly in May 1992. “Demarcation of the state by separation from the two other peoples” was the first and comprehensive goal.

Donia said that, during the assembly session held on May 12, when he was appointed the Commander of the Army, Mladic “harshly warned” political leaders that the adopted strategic goals were not achievable by telling them: “People, this would be genocide”.

The witness said that the five remaining strategic goals included “removing the border between the Serb states on River Drina”; breaking through a corridor in order to connect Western Bosnia with Eastern Bosnia and then also with Serbia; dividing Sarajevo; ensuring Republika Srpska’s access to the sea coast establishing borders on the Neretva and Una rivers.

According to the American historian’s testimony, as the war continued, Mladic became more and more dedicated to achieving those goals, which can be illustrated by his words during an assembly session held in January 1994, when he said that he would take care of making sure that “the enemy would disappear completely”.

The achievement of the strategic goals implied “full political separation by borders and separation of Serbs from Bosniaks and Croats”. Such separation, particularly in ethnically-mixed areas like Sarajevo, could not be achieved without a significant movement of the population, said Donia.

Bosnian Serb leaders had those goals in mind even before proclaiming them. Supporting his allegation, Donia quoted Karadzic’s speech before the Bosnian State Assembly in October 1991.

In that speech, Karadzic said the decision by Bosniaks and Croats to hold a referendum about independence despite Serb objections “would lead to hell in Bosnia and Herzegovina and, perhaps, the disappearance of Muslims” since “the Muslim people cannot defend themselves” in the event of war.

Donia said that, a short time later, in the autumn of 1991 Serb leaders undertook the first measures to separate themselves and create a new state by leaving the Bosnian State Assembly and creating their own, and began implementing “a detailed plan” for taking over the authority in municipalities throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The indictment charges Mladic with genocide in Srebrenica and seven other municipalities, persecution of Bosniaks and Croats throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina, terror against civilians in Sarajevo and taking UNPROFOR members hostage.

At the beginning of the cross-examination Mladic’s Defence attorney Branko Lukic denied Donia’s expert skills, suggesting that he spent most of his working life with a financial company. Donia confirmed that.

Commenting on Donia’s report about “the background, politics and strategy of the siege of Sarajevo”, Lukic asked the witness whether he knew that “5,500 Serbs” were killed in that city during the war, “only because they were Serbs”.

Donia confirmed that such murders of Serbs did happen in Sarajevo, but he said that the number of victims mentioned by Lukic was “not proved and was probably exaggerated”.

Mladic’s Defence attorney is due to continue cross-examining the Prosecution’s expect on Friday, August 22.