Joint declaration by German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and British Foreign Secretary William Hague

On behalf of the British and German people, we stand by Bosnia and Herzegovina citizens as they commemorate and honour the memory of the citizens lost in the act of genocide that took place in the Bosnian town of Srebrenica 19 years ago.

This was an act of genocide of a scale unseen in Europe for decades, and a tragedy which should never have been allowed to occur. Today, we - the UK and Germany - renew our lasting support for those affected and commitment to the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina. We will never forget these events.

The commemorations remind us of the terrible consequences when poisonous rhetoric is followed by acts of killing and ethnic cleansing, and when these go unchallenged. We reject entirely the efforts of those who seek to alter history, to deny Bosnia and Herzegovina’s rich and diverse ethnic make-up, or that work to undermine the territorial integrity of this country. The redrawing of borders in the Balkans is over.

Germany and the UK stand firmly with those in Bosnia who want to a build a peaceful, united and prosperous future.