Controversial Roundtable: Bosnian Serb Officials Meet Sanctioned Russians, Address 'Historical Truth'

A group of legislators from the National Assembly of Republika Srpska (NSRS) recently participated in an online roundtable discussion alongside sanctioned Russian officials. Among the central themes debated was a significant reinterpretation of historical events, according to a report from [Slobodna Bosna](https://www.slobodna-bosna.ba/vijest/485534/prekrajanje_historije_poslanici_iz_rs_na_sastanku_s_negatorima_genocida_i_sankcionisanim_rusima.html). An official statement indicated that the discussions encompassed alleged genocides against Soviet and Serb populations during World War II, atrocities targeting Serbs in the 1992–1995 Bosnian War, and the outcomes and implications of the Dayton Agreement.

The digital event, titled "Lessons of World War II, New Challenges of Today – Rebirth of Nazism," featured Elena Afanasjeva. She holds positions as head of a friendship group and deputy chair of the Federal Council's Committee for International Affairs. Ms. Afanasjeva is currently under sanctions from the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Australia, and Ukraine due to her involvement in Russia's unlawful annexation of Ukrainian territories in 2022.

During her address, Afanasjeva asserted that the past two decades have witnessed a noticeable re-evaluation of World War II's outcomes. She attributed this trend to a new generation of politicians in Western countries, whom she claimed bear no moral accountability for events that transpired eighty years ago. She further alleged that those unable to achieve victory on the battlefield have instead resorted to information and psychological operations to discredit and diminish the war's results.

Ruslan Trad, a hybrid threats researcher at the Atlantic Council and writer for Bulgaria's Capital Weekly, informed Detektor that the specific phrasing "preserving historical truth and confronting historical revisionism" is a well-known soft power instrument of the Kremlin. "Moscow consistently employs this language to delegitimize Western narratives regarding the Soviet past, justify its invasion of Ukraine as an 'anti-fascist' operation, and cultivate allies in the Balkans who hold revisionist views on the 1990s wars in the former Yugoslavia," Trad explained.

This assessment is echoed by Stratcom, the European Union's disinformation combatting body. Its reports frequently highlight how Kremlin-aligned media and Russian officials equate contemporary Europe, specifically the EU, with Nazism.

Jelena Guskova, who heads the Center for the Study of the Contemporary Balkan Crisis at the Institute of Slavic Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, also attended the assembly. During her address, she reportedly emphasized the critical importance of maintaining Russian-Serbian relations, asserting that these are affirmed through ongoing institutional and political engagements, which serve as key indicators of continuity and mutual understanding. "The bonds between the Serbian and Russian peoples are further strengthened by their shared cultivation of cultural and historical ties, alongside mutual comprehension in current circumstances," Guskova stated.

Guskova has a history of controversial positions on war crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina, notably denying the Srebrenica genocide. She frequently minimizes victim numbers and attributes the event to foreign intelligence agencies. "Today, we know the operation was planned in England, France, and the USA," Guskova claimed in a 2023 RT documentary. She continued, stating, "Some sources say there were 200 dead, some 300. Other sources report up to 2,000. But these figures do not mean a genocide occurred. It is still unclear who killed them. Ninety-seven percent of those killed have no bullet traces." These assertions directly contradict numerous official proofs confirming the facts of the Srebrenica genocide.

The roundtable notably emphasized the "necessity of countering historical revisionism and the relativization of crimes committed during World War II, with particular focus on the suffering of the Soviet and Serbian peoples throughout the 20th century," as reported by RTRS.

Mladen Bubonjić, a communications expert from Banja Luka, told Detektor that while the Soviet Army undeniably won World War II, the contemporary interpretation of this victory has shifted, now primarily serving to legitimize specific political agendas. "Here, legitimacy is conferred through the format of a scientific conference. Individuals, whether actual scientists or those posing as such, are exploited," Bubonjić observed. He elaborated, "Some academics from higher education institutions employ quasi-scientific methods, marked by generalizations, relativization, and inadequate argumentation. It's not about scientific methodology, but rather a scientific facade, used to endorse prevailing ideologies, political programs, and societal ideas." He stressed that historical narratives are always shaped by those who control them, a phenomenon particularly evident in current global circumstances. "This leads to a situation where relativization is condemned, yet it is simultaneously fought against with more relativization. Such a dynamic unfolds in a society devoid of political, social, or legal accountability," Bubonjić concluded.

Several of the Republika Srpska participants have previously engaged in the relativization of war crimes. Dragomir Vasić, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, asserted during his roundtable speech that the Serbian people were "often portrayed as aggressors" during the Bosnian War, while "Serbian victims and suffering remained marginalized." Vasić himself faces ongoing war crimes proceedings before the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, related to alleged atrocities committed in the Zvornik area in spring 1992.

His colleague, Srđan Mazalica, highlighted the significance of commemorating the systematic killings of Serbs within the Independent State of Croatia, a Nazi German puppet state. During World War II, the Ustaše movement was responsible for the deaths of 83,145 Serbs, Jews, Roma, and anti-fascists in the Jasenovac concentration camp. Mazalica has a record of relativizing the Srebrenica genocide and denying the white armbands campaign in Prijedor.

Other notable attendees included Duško Perović, who heads the RS Mission in the Russian Federation, and Andrei Morozov, the Russian Federation's Charge d'Affaires in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Morozov has previously been seen commemorating Victory Day over Fascism alongside members of the "Night Wolves" organization.