Belgrade: The president of the National Council for Cooperation with the Hague Tribunal,  has said that it is still early to say whether Radovan Karadzic’s arrest can reveal the whereabouts of Ratko Mladic, the Chief of Staff of the Army of Republika Srpska (the Bosnian Serb Army) during the Bosnian War of 1992-1995.

Ljajic told that Karadzic investigation and the reconstruction of his movements from the moment he arrived in Serbia are still ongoing.
Ljajic said, “It would be unrealistic and pretentious to think that such an investigation could give us clues leading to Ratko Mladic. It is still early to make any kind of guesses on that front.”

He stated that the search for the remaining two Hague fugitives, Ratko Mladic and Goran Hadzic, would continue due to Serbia’s international obligations and the continuation of its reforms, which would accelerate Serbia’s pace towards the EU.

Commenting on Karadzic’s extradition, Ljajic said that the exact time of his extradition had been chosen in order to avoid possible incidents, and to be fully in line with legal procedure, so that there could be no question of anything “being done outwith the law.”

He said that the Serbian authorities, after the arrest of Karadzic, expected a positive report from Hague Chief Prosecutor Serge Brammertz both to the UN Security Council and to the EU Council of Ministers. “This is the crowning proof that Serbia is neither a place nor a haven for suspected war criminals, and that we are ready to carry out our other obligations,” He said.

Ljajic said that completing Hague cooperation would heal some of the rifts and divisions in society, and calm the political situation in Serbia. He added that the participation of the Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) and New Serbia (NS) in protests against cooperation with the Hague Tribunal should be treated as part of a political battle and an attempt to find an issue that might bring them certain political gain.