The arrest of Mladić has deepened the differences not only amongst the public but also with the government. Understandably, the presidential ruling council in the Bosnian-Croats Federation welcomed the arrest as it would help reduce the families’ pain.

The important thing here is that this broad division is not only at street level but also at the official level. While the statements varied of the three-member (Bosnian, Serb and Croat) Presidential Council of Bosnia, the Serb republic’s desired to fund the defense team for Mladić in The Hague, which clearly highlights extent of division between the parties.

Finally, the statement of the Serbian government’s Bosnian Minister Rasim Ljajic that the arrest of Mladić and handing him over will pave the way for the national reconciliation between the Serbs and the Bosnians is seen as a wish. Assortment of intellectuals, politicians and other segments in Serbia protested against the arrest of Mladić to the International Court of War Crimes.

Therefore, the Serbian government is depending on its success in obtaining the nomination of Serbia to join the EU in the autumn of 2011 and get more help from Europe to absorb pockets of poverty in Serbia to raise their popularity before the elections in the spring of 2012 which Mladić will be its symbols and slogans.

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