"The Netherlands remains committed to complete co-operation with the tribunal. As long as the (tribunal's) remaining fugitives ... are not yet arrested and transferred to the tribunal, this will continue to impede Serbia's road to EU membership," a Dutch Foreign Ministry spokesman was quoted by the Reuters news agency as saying on Wednesday.
The European Council of Ministers is expected to discuss Serbia's EU membership application on 25 October.
If EU ministers do not accept the Dutch request to delay a decision, the Dutch ministry said the Netherlands would then seek to ensure that full co-operation with the tribunal remains an integral element for joining the bloc.