In a statement carried by the Sarajevo-based "Dnevni avaz" daily on Sunday, Davidson said that in such cases the European legislation should have priority over national constitutions.
Although the issue of extradition of war crimes suspects has been integrated into the Constitutions of Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro, one should bear in mind that the two countries are signatories to the European Convention containing provisions on the extradition of citizens to other countries. This means that a solution to the problem can be found on the European level. The problem may also be solved in line with the principles applied in case of the Hague war crimes tribunal, the US diplomat said.
Nevertheless, the processing of the perpetrators of war crimes committed in Bosnia-Herzegovina before the country's courts remains a long-term goal, he added, warning that this solution could not be achieved overnight.
Davidson said the OSCE did not want to dictate the outcome of the process of talks that started with a meeting of the three countries' justice ministers in Brijuni, Croatia, earlier this month.
The OSCE had prepared for the meeting a declaration to be signed by the ministers, which confirmed the countries' readiness to extradite war crimes suspects. The justice ministers of Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro did not want to sign the document because the issue is already regulated by the two countries' constitutions.
Davidson called on the three countries to continue talks on the processing of war crimes.