David Pettigrew, a professor of philosophy and studies of the Holocaust and genocide at South Connecticut State University, argues that after the final verdict against Ratko Mladic, his toxic legacy should first be confronted in Bosnia's Republika Srpska (RS) entity.

“Mladic's war crimes secured the territory of the Republika Srpska which was recognized and legalized by the Dayton Peace Agreement. It is a recognition that was nothing less than a reward for a successful genocide,” he pointed out.
He believes that Mladic's toxic legacy continues, not only on banners, murals and honorary plaques but also through the existence of the RS itself, which, for the time being, continues the genocidal war through political means with the aim of achieving ethnic homogeneity and undermining Bosnia's sovereignty, creating crisis after crisis.

According to him the RS and the Russian Federation only support the Dayton framework to keep BiH at the deadlock of a non-civic system, a stalemate that prevents constitutional reform that would allow the transition from ethnically divided constituent peoples to the common dignity and rights of all citizens.

“By supporting the Dayton and Bosnia's Croat and Serb nationalist parties, which are the cause of the country's dysfunctionality, the Russian Federation is jeopardizing BiH's ability to meet the needs of its citizens. Not only has Russia hampered BiH's ability to respond to the current civil crisis but to the current public health crisis. In that sense, the Russian Federation and its allies have become an existential threat to BiH. Such is the poisonous legacy of Ratko Mladic,” David Pettigrew said during the session titled “Can the final verdict against Mladic affect the civil order of BiH?” organised by the association of intellectuals Circle 99 in Sarajevo.

He stressed that the international community must pursue a strategy that would simultaneously react to Banja Luka (the RS administrative centre) and Moscow, effectively preventing [Bosnian Serb Presidency Chairman Milorad] Dodik's toxic and destabilizing influence in the region, while neutralizing the Russian Federation's malign influence.

“The United States and the EU need to accelerate Bosnia's entry into the EU and NATO membership, given the fact that BiH was a victim of international aggression from Croatia and Serbia, and consequently suffered war crimes, including genocide, EU and NATO membership should be seen as a matter of restorative justice,” he said.

He concluded that such initiatives would make room for Constitutional reforms by which civil society based on citizens with equal rights and dignity could flourish. the Professor added that they are still waiting for that promise from the Biden administration to come true.

Professor Pettigrew is also a member of the Steering Committee of the Yale University Genocide Study Program.

Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serb army general, was sentenced to life in prison by the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (MICT), Tuesday, confirming the first instance verdict.