Belgrade reacted immediately after the Hague ruling with a familiar political line: to use an individual criminal proceeding to target the entire KLA. Serbian Deputy Prime Minister Ivica Dacic called the judgment confirmation of Serbia’s claims, even though the ruling itself does not address collective responsibility of the organization.
Dacic reads the ruling through Belgrade’s narrative
According to the version presented by Dacic, the judgment against Hashim Thaci, Jakup Krasniqi, Kadri Veseli and Rexhep Selimi proves that the KLA was a “criminal and terrorist organization” and that its political and military leaders bear responsibility for crimes during the war in Kosovo.
The Serbian official’s statement shifts the focus from the convicted individuals to a broader political and historical labeling, in line with the position Belgrade has maintained for years regarding the war in Kosovo.
What the court actually addressed
The ruling of the Specialist Chambers concerns the individual criminal responsibility of the accused and not a collective declaration about the KLA as a structure as a whole.
The four accused were found guilty of war crimes, while they were acquitted of charges of crimes against humanity. This differs significantly from the political interpretation that Serbian authorities are giving to the ruling.
Belgrade’s dissatisfaction even with the part that does not serve its narrative
Dacic did not stop at the convictions. He also criticized the dismissal of the charges of crimes against humanity, calling it a “political maneuver.”
According to him, such an approach minimizes the suffering of Serb victims. He also claimed that even the sentences handed down are not sufficient for the victims’ families.
The ruling in The Hague, the reaction in Belgrade
Dacic’s swift reaction shows the effort by Serbian authorities to turn a complex judicial process into a political argument ready for domestic and regional use.
At its core, between what the court decided and the way the ruling is being presented by Belgrade, a clear distinction remains: the judgment speaks of individual responsibility, while the official Serbian reaction seeks to turn it into a political stamp against the KLA.
This is the essence of the clash of interpretation after the ruling in The Hague: a criminal case limited to individuals is being used by Serbia to feed a much broader political narrative.
That is precisely where the main tension of the official Serbian reaction to this judgment lies.