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EU Nations Condemn Karadzic Candidacy
‘Karadzic belongs before the international war crimes
In a statement in Florence, where Italy is chairing a European Union summit, Italian Foreign Minister Lamberto Dini said a candidacy by the Bosnian Serb leader violated the letter and the spirit of the Dayton accords which ended Bosnia's war.
Karadzic's candidacy was "unacceptable and would be taking provocation to the extreme if the report is confirmed," he said. The Bosnian Serb news agency SRNA reported on Thursday that the Serb Democratic Party (SDS) local branch in the Serb stronghold of Pale had nominated Karadzic for the presidency of Republika Srpska, which covers nearly half of Bosnian territory.
"Karadzic belongs before the international war crimes tribunal in The Hague, not in the president's chair," German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel said in a statement. French foreign ministry spokesman Jacques Rummelhardt said a Karadzic candidacy was "a flagrant violation of the peace accords."
"We hold the (Bosnian Serb) leadership responsible for the whole application of the accords and demand that they take all the necessary measures to prevent or repress any violation of the peace accords," Rummelhardt told reporters in Paris.
Karadzic is barred as an indicted war criminal from holding or running for office under last November's Dayton agreement. EU leaders were due to discuss the situation in Bosnia at a dinner on Friday night and hear a report from the international community's High Representative, Carl Bildt. Karadzic is the most prominent person to be indicted by the U.N. war crimes tribunal in The Hague, along with the Bosnian Serb military commander General Ratko Mladic.
The West and the Muslim-led Bosnian government have insisted on Karadzic's removal from power before the elections, designed to provide Bosnia with multi-ethnic institutions, but Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic has so far failed to oust him.
It is unclear whether the ruling SDS leadership would support the nomination from the local board. Bosnian Serb vice-president Biljana Plavsic has said the SDS is due to announce its presidential candidate next Thursday.
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FLORENCE, Italy, June 21 (Reuters) - EU countries on Friday condemned the reported nomination of Radovan Karadzic, an indicted war criminal, as a candidate for president of Bosnian Serb territory in planned Bosnia-wide elections in September.
The Indictment Against Radovan Karadzic and Gen. Ratko Mladic War Crimes Tribunal
Berserkistan, June 21 · Defiant Serbs Nominate Karadzic for President
Berserkistan, June 14 · Karadzic May Run for Office
Berserkistan, June 12 · Bildt: Karadzic Must Not Stand in Way of Elections
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