SARAJEVO, May 28 (Hina) - The European Union has urged Bosnia-Herzegovina not to ratify an agreement protecting US citizens from extradition to the International Criminal Court (ICC), signed earlier this month with the United States,
the Sarajevo media reported.
SARAJEVO, May 28 (Hina) - The European Union has urged Bosnia-
Herzegovina not to ratify an agreement protecting US citizens from
extradition to the International Criminal Court (ICC), signed
earlier this month with the United States, the Sarajevo media
reported. #L#
Not quoting any specific source, BH TV 1 and "Dnevni avaz" daily
report that the authorities in Sarajevo today received a letter of
warning from Brussels, signed by the EU's commissioner for external
relations, Chris Patten, and Greek Foreign Minister Georgios
Papandreou.
According to the Sarajevo media sources, Patten and Papandreou do
not state explicitly in the letter that Bosnia-Herzegovina should
not ratify the agreement, but they do state that the EU strongly
supports the ICC.
If it wants to join the EU, Bosnia-Herzegovina must secure respect
for the values and goals set by the EU. As regards the ICC, the court
enjoys the full support of the EU, both in political and financial
terms, reads the letter.
As a country with which the EU wants to establish close ties,
Bosnia-Herzegovina is urged to take into account conclusions of the
EU Council while defining its stand on the USA's request for the
conclusion of the agreement, reads the letter.
The US government earlier expressed satisfaction with the signing
of the agreement with Bosnia and requested that it be ratified by
parliament until July 1, as that was the only way the country would
continue receiving its military assistance.
Despite previous controversies, the Bosnian public has mostly
welcomed the signing of the agreement, primarily due to the fact
that it secures the stay of US troops in the country, which make the
backbone of the peace-keeping Stabilisation Force.
(hina) rml