SEPAROVIC: IT IS NOT A POINT OF DISPUTE THAT ICJ'S OPINION IS SOUGHT BY SECURITY COUNCIL OR GENERAL ASSEMBLY

ZAGREB, Sept 7 (Hina) - In a letter to the President of the Hague Tribunal, Gabrielle Kirk McDonald, Croatian Justice Minister Zvonimir Separovic requests a decision on ICTY's jurisdiction over the Croatian operations 'Flash' and 'Storm' by an independent trial chamber of the Tribunal or an advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague. It is not a point of dispute that such an opinion can be sought only by the U.N. Security Council or the General Assembly, said a statement issued on Tuesday by the Justice Minister's cabinet. Hina today published a news item citing an official with the ICJ who said that the opinion of the ICJ regarding ICTY's jurisdiction over the investigation into operations 'Flash' and 'Storm' can be sought neither by the Tribunal nor by Croatia, but by U.N. bodies solely, and considering the nature of the dispute, such a measure could also be taken by the U.N. Security Council and the General Assembly. According to the statement, "the letter by the Justice Minister to the President of the International Criminal Tribunal, Judge Gabrielle Kirk McDonald, reiterates the stand of the Council for Cooperation with the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Tribunal, which is expressed also in the Croatian Government's letter to the Security Council, that in the case of 'Flash' and 'Storm' we request a decision by the International Court of Justice, because Croatia believes the ICTY does not have the jurisdiction over those military-police operations, which were aimed at liberating its territory". "It is not disputable that such an opinion can be sought only by the U.N. Security Council or the General Assembly. The Security Council now has the opportunity to make a decision", the statement reads. "Croatia will accept the decision of such an independent legal body while protecting its own national interest, security of the country", the statement reads. Speaking at a press conference in Zagreb yesterday, Separovic said Croatia would suggest in a letter to ICTY President McDonald that an advisory opinion be sought from the International Court of Justice regarding the matter of jurisdiction of the Hague Tribunal over the operations 'Flash' and 'Storm'. On August 25, ICTY President Gabrielle Kirk McDonald reported Croatia with the U.N. Security Council for non-cooperation in an investigation into the operations 'Flash' and 'Storm', and for failing to extradite Mladen Naletilic Tuta, accused of war crimes in the Croat-Muslim conflict in Bosnia-Herzegovina, thus transferring the dispute to the Security Council. (hina) rml