Coverage

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said Moscow is doing everything it can to provide medical assistance to Ratko Mladic, the 83-year-old former Bosnian Serb Army commander serving a life sentence in The Hague for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, as reported by the Russian state news agency TASS.

"We are doing everything we can to make his situation easier, to ensure that he has access to medical care, and that he can see his family," Grushko was quoted as saying on April 21 following talks in Banja Luka with the leadership of Republika Srpska, one of the two entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He added, according to TASS, that "those who are currently deciding about his fate are guided by absolutely different [considerations]."

The remarks came amid a growing push from Republika Srpska and Serbia authorities to have Mladic released from The Hague prison for medical treatment, citing his failing health. TASS reported that on April 20, Republika Srpska's Minister of Justice Nenad Vujic said Belgrade was preparing to request Mladic's transfer to Serbia for treatment. He described Mladic's condition as serious and said that officials in The Hague had been informed.

On April 28, TASS reported that Republika Srpska's Prime Minister Savo Minic stated that all conditions have been met for the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (the IRMCT, which took over the UN tribunal's functions after they closed) to decide on the urgent release of General Mladic for medical treatment in Serbia. "All conditions have been met," Minic said, according to the press service of the ruling Alliance of Independent Social Democrats, as quoted by TASS. He added that the request from the governments of Republika Srpska and Serbia had been submitted and that a decision was pending.

Key Claims

The following claims about Mladic's situation appear across the TASS reports consulted:

  • Mladic, the former Bosnian Serb Army commander, is serving a life imprisonment sentence imposed by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in November 2017 for genocide, crimes against humanity, and violations of the laws or customs of war.
  • He is now housed in a prison hospital in The Hague and has been bedridden for the past year and a half, according to statements by Republika Srpska officials quoted by TASS.
  • Mladic suffered a stroke on April 15, according to his son Darko, as reported by TASS.
  • In early 2025, the IRMCT rejected an earlier request by Mladic's defense for early release on health grounds. TASS reports noted that his family called the decision politically motivated.
  • Republika Srpska authorities claim that all conditions have been met for the IRMCT to release Mladic on urgent humanitarian for treatment in Serbia, but the decision is still pending.
None of these claims could be independently verified from outside TASS's reporting within the scope of this article.

Perspectives

Russian government: Deputy Foreign Minister Grushko framed the issue as a matter of medical care and family access, speaking of doing what is possible to ease Mladic's situation.

Republika Srpska institutions: Justice Minister Vucic and Prime Minister Minic emphasized the urgency of Mladic's medical needs, saying all national and international legal conditions for his temporary release have been satisfied.

The International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals is an independent body (and not a party able to issue citations), and its internal deliberations are not visible from the outside. No statement from the IRMCT itself has been cited in these reports.