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Tough Talks between Milosevic and Holbrooke Last into Night
Four hours into the talks, a U.S. official told
By Peter Greste
Four hours into the talks, a U.S. official told reporters it was a "tough discussion" but declined to elaborate. The United States and European allies have demanded Karadzic step down as required by the Dayton peace accord and stay out of post-war elections scheduled for September 14.
Holbrooke told reporters earlier in Sarajevo he supported banning Karadzic's Serb Democratic Party (SDS) from the election if he remained party chief. "If Karadzic is not out of the leadership of the SDS, the SDS is de-certified," he said. "If it is de-certified, the election will go forward. It will be on the one hand a little more difficult to implement and on the other hand a cleaner election, because an organisation headed by an indicted war criminal is not running."
The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which is overseeing the Bosnia elections, is expected to deliver a final decision on the status of Karadzic's party on Friday. Some diplomats fear the poll's legitimacy could be called into question if the Serbs' most influential political organisation were to be barred.
"Banning the SDS from the elections will be very difficult, because it would be very risky for all of us, and therefore, the whole international community," Radisic was quoted as saying by the Bosnian Serb SRNA news agency. Senior Bosnian Serb officials flew to the Serbian capital earlier to discuss Karadzic's future before Holbrooke's arrival.
Until now, most diplomatic pressure has been applied to Milosevic to oust Karadzic, because the Serbian president signed the Dayton accord on behalf of the Bosnian Serbs. Under Dayton, no individual indicted of war crimes can hold public office or participate in elections.
Holbrooke reminded reporters that Milosevic agreed to cooperate with the U.N. war crimes tribunal but never specifically promised to depose Karadzic. While the Serbian president has the military means to oust Karadzic, any attempt to do so would inflame nationalists in rump Yugoslavia and the Bosnian Serb republic who already accuse Milosevic of betraying them by signing a disadvantageous peace.
Asked if Milosevic really had the clout to do it, Holbrooke said he was uncertain. "He's been asked to do so by endless rounds of international mediators. He's either unable or unwilling. We don't know. The jury is out on that," he said. |
BELGRADE, July 18 (Reuters) - U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke held tough talks with Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic on Thursday evening in an attempt to resolve the political fate of Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic. Holbrooke met Milosevic for the second day running to press for the removal of Karadzic from power in Bosnian Serb territory.
As reporters waited outside Milosevic's official residence in the leafy suburb of Dedinje, there were signs the negotiations were running into difficulty. State television made no mention of Holbrooke's visit and the Bosnian Serb Socialist party, an ally of Milosevic, warned that barring the SDS from the September vote would be a "risky" move. "Such a move could seriously undermine the holding of the September elections," Zivko Radisic, leader of the Bosnian Serb Socialists said on Thursday.
Berserkistan, July 18 · Bosnian Serbs to Belgrade for Talks on Karadzic
Berserkistan, July 18 · Most Powerful Man in Balkans Faces Uncomfortable Choice
Berserkistan, July 18 · Karadzic or Not, Election Boycott Feared
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