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Serbia

As the largest of the former Yugoslav republics, it was the downturn in human rights performance in Serbia in the late 1980s which sparked increased Helsinki Commission focus on Yugoslavia, especially as the Soviet Union and the other communist countries elsewhere of Eastern Europe were, in contrast, increasingly implementing their Helsinki Final Act commitments. A Commission-organized congressional delegation first visited Serbia and met with its leadership as well as human rights advocates in April 1990, a trip which included a visit to Kosovo which was then still a province of Serbia.

A similar delegation returned in March 1991, and Commissioners again visited Kosovo in April 1993, as the Yugoslav federation violently disintegrated.  It constituent republics and the province of Kosovo moved toward independent statehood while Slobodan Milosevic sought to establish a “Greater Serbia” through aggression and ethnic cleansing fueled by extreme nationalism.  The next congressional delegation to Serbia organized by the Helsinki Commission would not occur until July 2011, although in the 1990s several Helsinki Commissioners traveled to Belgrade to raise their concerns about the Serbian leadership’s direct support for conflict in Bosnia and elsehwre.

Commission staff observed the December 1990 multi-party elections in Serbia and continued to visit the republic periodically in order to observe elections, participate on OSCE field missions, or observe firsthand the human rights situation.  The last staff visit was in 2007 to observe parliamentary elections.

Today, Commission concerns regarding Serbia relate less to respect for electoral processes and the rule of law – where the country has progressed reasonably well -- than to the nationalist legacy in Serbian politics and its effect on regional stability.

In calling for U.S. leadership in responding effectively if not decisively to the various Yugoslav conflicts, especially in Bosnia from 1992-95 but also Croatia in 1991 and Kosovo from 1998-99, the Commission actively responded to unprecedented violence against innocent civilian populations on a massive scale.

Following the Dayton Agreement ending the Bosnian conflict in November 1995, through hearings and legislation, the Commission pushed for greater U.S. support for democratic forces within Serbia seeking to challenge Milosevic’s power through democratic change. When the Kosovo conflict ended in 1999, the Commission was known for its focus on the plight of the Serb communities and other minorities in Kosovo, rather than on the issue of Kosovo’s status.

As Serbia has improved its implementation of OSCE norms, the Commission has acknowledged progress and supported the country’s aspirations for EU integration.  A priority issue for successive Commission leaders, raised in hearings and meeting as well as through legislation linking progress to U.S. assistance, was Serbian cooperation with the Hague-based International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.This included the apprehension and transfer to the tribunal all persons on Serbian territory indicted for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, a goal achieved in July 2011. It also included encouraging bilateral dialogue with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo rather than directly supporting parallel or separatist political institutions which challenge the sovereignty of those countries.

In 2015, the Commission actively engaged Serbia as it served as the annual chair of the OSCE multilateral diplomatic efforts.  This included the appearance of Serbian Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic at a Commission hearing, and of the Serbian Ambassador to the United States at a hearing more specifically focused on the migrant and refugee crisis in Europe.

Staff Contact: Everett Price, senior policy advisor

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Press Releases

Cardin, Shaheen, Wicker Introduce New Bipartisan Bil...

Aug 04, 2022

WASHINGTON – Helsinki Commission Chairman Ben Cardin (MD) with Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Europe and Regional Security Cooperation and member of the Helsinki Commission, introduced new bipartisan legislation with Helsinki Commission Ranking Member Sen. Roger Wicker (MS) called the Western Balkans Democracy and Prosperity Act. This legislation would […]

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Articles

30 Years After Ovcara

Nov 19, 2021

By Robert Hand, Senior Policy Advisor On November 20, 1991, after the fall of the city of Vukovar in Croatia, militant Serb forces removed 265 ill and injured Croats from a hospital. They were taken to the nearby Ovčara farm southeast of Vukovar, where they were abused before being shot and killed, with their bodies […]

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Hearings

Sweden’s Leadership of the OSCE

Jun 11, 2021

In 2021, Sweden chairs the world’s largest regional security organization—the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)—which comprises 57 participating States stretching from North America, across Europe, and to Central Asia and Mongolia. Even as the OSCE begins to emerge from the global COVID-19 pandemic, it is tackling other critical challenges, including Russia’s ongoing […]

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Articles

COVID-19 Vaccination Rollouts Expose Underlying Ineq...

Jun 07, 2021

By Michelle Ngirbabul, Max Kampelman Fellow, and Shannon Simrell, Representative of the Helsinki Commission to the U.S. Mission to the OSCE More than one year into the COVID-19 pandemic, over 169 million cases and nearly four million deaths have been reported worldwide. The development and rollout of mass vaccination campaigns have proved to be the […]

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Press Releases

Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde to Appear at Hels...

Jun 03, 2021

WASHINGTON—The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the Helsinki Commission, today announced the following online hearing: SWEDEN’S LEADERSHIP OF THE OSCE Priorities for 2021 Friday, June 11, 2021 9:15 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. Watch Live: https://www.youtube.com/HelsinkiCommission In 2021, Sweden chairs the world’s largest regional security organization—the Organization for Security and Cooperation […]

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Press Releases

Helsinki Commission Commemorates 45 Years of Advanci...

Jun 03, 2021

WASHINGTON—To commemorate the 45th anniversary of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the U.S. Helsinki Commission, on June 3, Chairman Sen. Ben Cardin (MD) and commission leaders Sen. Roger Wicker (MS) and Rep. Joe Wilson (SC-02) issued the following statements: “The Helsinki Commission has played a vital role in elevating […]

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Articles

Retrospective on the 116th Congress

Dec 18, 2020

By Emma Derr, Max Kampelman Fellow “For more than four decades, the Helsinki Commission has championed human rights and democracy across North America, Europe, and Central Asia. While we have worked to keep these concerns on the U.S. agenda, much remains to be accomplished.” ​ Rep. Alcee L. Hastings (FL-20), Chairman, U.S. Helsinki Commission In the […]

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Press Releases

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama to Appear at Helsin...

Sep 09, 2020

WASHINGTON—The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the Helsinki Commission, today announced the following online hearing: ALBANIA’S CHAIRMANSHIP OF THE OSCE Responding to the Multiple Challenges of 2020 Thursday, September 17, 2020 1:00 p.m. Watch Live: www.youtube.com/HelsinkiCommission In 2020, Albania holds the chairmanship of the world’s largest regional security organization—the Organization […]

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Publications

Human Rights and Democracy in a Time of Pandemic

May 12, 2020

The outbreak of the novel coronavirus pandemic has prompted governments around the world to take extraordinary measures in the interest of public health and safety. As of early April, nearly two-thirds of the 57 participating States of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe had declared “states of emergency” or invoked similar legal measures […]

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Briefings

It’s All About the Money

Dec 03, 2019

As the countries of the Western Balkans continue to seek the integration that promises stability and prosperity, the inability to genuinely confront and overcome official corruption through good governance measures has undoubtedly slowed their progress. Foreign investment—vital to improved economic performance—is discouraged by a business climate characterized by weak adherence to the rule of law.  […]

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Press Releases

Corruption in the Western Balkans Focus of Upcoming ...

Nov 22, 2019

WASHINGTON—The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the Helsinki Commission, today announced the following briefing: IT’S ALL ABOUT THE MONEY Corruption as a Brake on Balkan Recovery Tuesday, December 3, 2019 2:00 p.m. Cannon House Office Building Room 210 Live Webcast: www.facebook.com/HelsinkiCommission As the countries of the Western Balkans continue to […]

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Articles

2019 Human Dimension Implementation Meeting

Sep 13, 2019

From September 16 to September 27, OSCE participating States will meet in Warsaw, Poland, for the 2019 Human Dimension Implementation Meeting (HDIM), organized by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).  As Europe’s largest annual human rights conference, the HDIM brings together hundreds of government and nongovernmental representatives, international experts, and human […]

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