U.S. presses for arrest of Bosnia's most-wanted
May 24, 1996
Web posted at: 12:15 a.m. EDT (0415 GMT)SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (CNN) -- The U.S. envoy for Bosnia, on a whirlwind trip through the Balkans, added his voice Thursday to a growing international chorus demanding the ouster of two major obstacles to the Dayton peace accord.
In meeting after meeting in the Bosnian capital, Undersecretary of State John Kornblum plainly stated that indicted war criminals Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and his military man General Ratko Mladic must go.
"The United States expects Karadzic and Mladic not only to be removed from power, but to be presented to the War Crimes Tribunal in the Hague," Kornblum said.
The U.S. State Department and the War Crimes Tribunal have criticized Belgrade for failing to arrest Mladic during a public appearance he made in Belgrade Tuesday at the funeral of a fellow Bosnian Serb, commander Djordje Djukic. Washington has also threatened Belgrade with continued sanctions and diplomatic isolation.
Mladic and Karadzic are considered international pariahs for their alleged wartime policies, including ethnic cleansing. But both have survived intense diplomatic efforts to dislodge them and continue to run the self-proclaimed Republik of Srpska as a separate entity.
While Karadzic and Mladic are reviled abroad, at home they are greatly revered. And public support for the pair has strengthened rather than diminished within the republic, which refuses to recognize the international court's jurisdiction.
One man in Belgrade said his full support went to the "Serb knights," Karadzic and Mladic. "They have stood at the top of the Serb nation with the best and the bravest and saved what could be saved from our enemies."
The Bosnian Serbs have threatened to hold a referendum in support of Karadzic and his policies. "Parliamentary speaker" Momcilo Krajisnik told the newspaper Glassrpski, published in Banja Luka, that the referendum would "remove doubts" on the part of the international community regarding unity between the Bosnian Serb leadership and the nation.
The Bosnian government has said that Karadzic and Mladic's continued public and political clout threatens the Dayton peace accord and that upcoming elections will fall apart if the pair is around to influence the outcome.
Even as the Bosnian Serb government continues to pronounce its full support for Bosnia's most-wanted men, diplomatic officials say they have received assurances from Belgrade that both are on the way out of public and political life.
CNN Correspondent Jackie Shymanski and Reuters contributed to this report.
Related stories:
- Bosnia peace team hopes to keep Karadzic out of spotlight - May 21, 1996
- Karadzic reportedly may leave office - May 19, 1996
- Karadzic hands over significant powers to deputy - May 18, 1996
- Yugoslavian leaders battle for legitimacy - May 16, 1996
- War crimes tribunal gets history lesson - May 8, 1996
- A united Bosnia? Not anytime soon - May 8, 1996
- Prosecutor details Bosnian's alleged atrocities - May 7, 1996
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