ZAGREB/THE HAGUE, July 8 (Hina) - A former foreign minister of Norway, Knut Vollebaek, on Monday testified in The Hague that Slobodan Milosevic wanted the war between the Croats and Muslims in Bosnia-Herzegovina and so in 1993 he
showed willingness to ensure the participation of the Knin-based Croatian Serb rebel leaders in negotiations on a cease-fire with Zagreb so that Croatian forces could be concentrated on the war in Bosnia.
ZAGREB/THE HAGUE, July 8 (Hina) - A former foreign minister of
Norway, Knut Vollebaek, on Monday testified in The Hague that
Slobodan Milosevic wanted the war between the Croats and Muslims in
Bosnia-Herzegovina and so in 1993 he showed willingness to ensure
the participation of the Knin-based Croatian Serb rebel leaders in
negotiations on a cease-fire with Zagreb so that Croatian forces
could be concentrated on the war in Bosnia. #L#
He believed that it was important for us all to wage the battle
against the Muslims. He said that in order to make it possible for
the Croats to concentrate on the Muslims, he would be prepared to
ask the Knin Serbs to participate in peace talks...in Norway and for
at least some time not to carry out military activities against the
Croats, Vollebaek said at the trial which the UN war crimes tribunal
is conducting against the former Yugoslav president.
The Norwegian diplomat said that Milosevic then said that the
Muslims should not be allowed to create a Muslim state in Europe.
Vollebaek, who was subpoenaed as a witness by the prosecution in the
Kosovo section of the trial against the former Yugoslav president,
in 1999 chaired the OSCE. He described the peace efforts in the
second half of 1993 when secret negotiations were organised by the
Knin Serbs and the Croatian government in Norway.
Vollebaek was then the assistant to the co-chair of the Conference
on the former Yugoslavia and in that capacity met with Milosevic -
the then president of Serbia - on several occasions.
I remember at least one meeting with him. We attempted to commence
secret negotiations in Norway between the Serbs and Croats. I then
met with president Milosevic and asked him to put pressure on the
Serbs in Knin to accept my proposal of the commencement of
negotiations.
Was he willing to help?, prosecutor Dirk Ryneveld asked.
Yes. This was sometime early autumn...at the time the Croatian
government was at war with the Muslims in Bosnia and the Serbs in
Knin. I asked him for his help and he said that he would help because
he believed that it would be difficult for the Croats to wage the war
on two fronts at the same time... In other words, he said that the
Croats need to be in a state to fight the Muslims, Vollebaek said.
Why did you turn to him to ensure the arrival to the negotiations of
another government, or rather, entity?, the prosecutor asked.
Then we were under the impression that the government in Belgrade
completely supported the government in Knin. We knew that the
people from Knin often went to Belgrade and we assumed that
Milosevic had a strong influence on the government in Knin. Seeing
that the Knin representatives later went to Norway to attend the
negotiations this just reflected my opinion that Belgrade
influenced Knin, the diplomat added.
Vollebaek is the current Norwegian Ambassador to the United States.
From 1997 to 2000 he was the Norwegian foreign minister and in 1999
he chaired the OSCE.
(hina) sp ms