Fury as Serbs boo Bosnian anthem

Nato commander Steven Schook (l) has backed defence reform

A group of Bosnian Serb army recruits has booed the Bosnian national anthem and refused to pledge allegiance to Bosnia at a swearing-in ceremony.

The recruits were the first ex-Bosnian Serb soldiers asked to swear loyalty to the Bosnian state since the Bosnian civil war of 1992-1995.

Under the peace accords that ended the war, an autonomous, Serb-run republic was established within Bosnia.

Bosnia and the international community strongly condemned the troops' actions.

During the ceremony the troops and their families jeered and whistled as the Bosnian national anthem was played.

When they were required to recite an oath of allegiance they instead uttered a pledge to the Bosnian Serb republic.

Protest condemned

The ceremony was the first since Bosnian authorities decided in 2003 to unify the country's armed forces.

Unification under the banner of the central state was intended to strengthen Bosnia as a nation, after years when the Bosnian Serb Republic and the Muslim-Croat Federation stayed largely separate.

The international community was quick to condemn the soldiers' protest.

The Nato commander in Bosnia, US General Steven Schook, called it "an illegal act", adding that the Bosnian Serb military was still influenced by opponents of reconciliation.

In a joint statement, the European Union, Nato, the US and the international envoy to Bosnia, Paddy Ashdown, insisted:

"The [Bosnian Serb Republic] must realise that it is an entity and not a state, and can only exist within Bosnia-Hercegovina....

"These events have to be taken very seriously as they indicate a deeper problem."

Bosnian Serb Defence Minister Milovan Stankovic condemned the protest and attempted to distance the republic's government from their actions.