WASHINGTON, Jan 1 (Hina) - The United States is dissatisfied with the poor cooperation of Yugoslavia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia with the Hague-based UN tribunal, and expects the apprehension of those accused of war crimes, a
senior official of the State Department said in Washington on Tuesday.
WASHINGTON, Jan 1 (Hina) - The United States is dissatisfied with
the poor cooperation of Yugoslavia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia
with the Hague-based UN tribunal, and expects the apprehension of
those accused of war crimes, a senior official of the State
Department said in Washington on Tuesday. #L#
The US special ambassador for war crimes, Pierre Richard Prosper,
accused the three countries of the failure to cooperate with the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).
Another 25 fugitives, wanted by the ICTY, are believed to be hidden
in the region.
Prosper told reporter that he was intending to visit Belgrade,
Sarajevo, Banja Luka and Zagreb in late January.
According to the US ambassador, Yugoslavia is risking to lose the
American economic assistance as of 31 March, if it fails to arrest
Bosnian Serb Ratko Mladic, accused of war crimes in Bosnia.
Washington is not going to offer assistance to Belgrade after 31
March, if the State Department does not see the confirmation of
cooperation between Belgrade and the ICTY, Prosper said.
He added that in 2002 exceptional progress had been made but it was
still not enough.
It is high time Belgrade apprehended Mladic and other indictees,
who are on Yugoslav territory, the diplomat said.
The pressure is going to be exerted on authorities of the Bosnian
Serb entity, who should nab another Bosnian Serb war-time leader,
Radovan Karadzic.
In Croatia, the US official will insist on the arrest of generals
Janko Bobetko and Ante Gotovina.
All know where Bobetko is and he should be arrested, Prosper said.
The 83-year-old general has recently been admitted to hospital in
Zagreb.
Last October the US diplomat said that his country could understand
that there was dissatisfaction in Croatia with the ICTY's
indictment against Gen. Bobetko, but that it was beyond question
that the indictment was confirmed by a legitimate court with which
Croatia was bound to cooperate.
On that occasion he said that he hoped that Zagreb was not heading
towards destructive confrontation with the Tribunal, and asked
Croatian authorities to help find where the indicted general
Gotovina was staying and hand him over to The Hague.
(hina) ms