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DE RUEHBW #0718/01 2041742
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 221742Z JUL 08
FM AMEMBASSY BELGRADE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0183
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RHEHNS/NSC WASHDC
RUZEJAA/JAC MOLESWORTH RAF MOLESWORTH UK
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BELGRADE 000718 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O.12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL ASEC SR
SUBJECT: SERBIA ARRESTS ACCUSED WAR CRIMINAL KARADZIC 
 
REF: THE HAGUE 619 
 
Summary 
------- 
 
¶1. (SBU) Serbian security forces arrested Hague Tribunal indictee 
Radovan Karadzic late on July 21 in Belgrade, where he had 
reportedly been living under an assumed identity.  The Serbian War 
Crimes court ruled the same night that he could be transferred to 
The Hague, a process that could take several days.  Opposition 
political parties condemned and pro-European parties hailed the 
arrest, while public reaction has so far been minimal. Foreign 
Minister Vuk Jeremic called the arrest a sign that Serbia was 
serious about European integration.  The Foreign Ministry has also 
told us that it is only a matter of time before Ratko Mladic, one of 
the other two Hague indictees at large, is arrested.  The arrest of 
Karadzic is an important step forward for the new Serbian government 
and an indication that it is capable of showing political courage. 
End Summary. 
 
Karadzic at Serbian War Crimes Court 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶2. (U) Serbian security forces arrested Bosnian Serb wartime 
political leader and Hague Tribunal (ICTY) indictee Radovan Karadzic 
on July 21, according to a statement released by the Serbian 
National Security Council late that night.  The statement further 
said the Special War Crimes Chamber of the Belgrade District Court 
held Karadzic and would be questioning him throughout the night. 
The Interior Ministry, now headed by Socialist leader Ivica Dacic, 
released a statement on July 21 saying its police did not take part 
in the arrest.  On July 22, Dacic told the press that the arrest was 
the result of the work of the previous government. 
 
¶3. (SBU) National Coordinator for ICTY Cooperation Rasim Ljajic and 
Serbian War Crimes Prosecutor Vladimir Vukcevic announced at an 
11:00 press conference on July 22 that the investigative judge had 
held a hearing at which he served Karadzic ICTY's indictment and 
confirmed that all requirements under Serbian law for Karadzic's 
transfer to the Hague had been fulfilled.  Karadzic now has three 
days to appeal the ruling, and a panel at the Special Court has a 
further three days to rule on the appeal.  Belgrade ICTY Office head 
Deyan Mihov predicted to us that Karadzic would use his alloted 
three days to appeal, but the court would quickly approve the 
transfer; Karadzic could be sent to The Hague by the end of the 
week. 
 
Extensive Surveillance Before Arrest 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶4. (SBU) Vukcevic told us privately the arrest came after a month of 
surveilling Karadzic's support network and that only three persons 
in the country knew about the operation in advance, including 
himself, new intelligence service (BIA) director Sasa Vukadinovic, 
and National Security Council secretary and presidential chief of 
staff Miodrag (Miki) Rakic.  He confirmed that the Interior Ministry 
was not involved.  Foreign Affairs Ministry Political Director 
Borislav Stefanovic also confirmed this information to us on July 
22, adding that Rakic deserved all the credit for making the arrest 
happen.  He predicted that Mladic would be captured within months if 
not weeks, and said the "rumor" was that the third remaining 
indictee Goran Hadzic was in Russia. 
 
¶5. (U) Ljajic and Vukcevic announced that Karadzic was arrested in a 
suburb of Belgrade, where he had been living under an assumed name 
and working at an alternative medicine clinic.  They said that only 
Karadzic's supporters had known his identity, since his appearance 
had changed radically. (They released a photo now posted on B-92 
http://www.b92.net/eng/news/politics- 
article.php?yyyy=2008&mm=07&dd=22&nav_id=5210 9.)  Karadzic's lawyer 
Svetozar Vujacic told the press a different version of events, 
claiming that his client was grabbed by unknown persons who threw a 
bag over his head on a Belgrade city bus on July 19 and held him "in 
a room somewhere" incommunicado for three days. 
 
Political Party Reactions 
------------------------- 
 
¶6. (U) Reactions from the parties were swift. Serbian Radical Party 
(SRS) General Secetary Aleksandar Vucic on July 21 condemned the 
rrest and accused President Tadic of promoting Seria's 
"disappearance."  Acting SRS president Tomisav Nikolic added on 
July 22 that Karadzic was "alegend and a myth" rather than a war 
criminal, ad that his party would do everything in its power o 
destroy the Tadic government.  In a statement ssued by party 
headquarters, the Socialist Party f Serbia (SPS) distanced itelf 
from the arrest and reiterated its opposition to the extradition of 
Serbian citizens to The Hague.  Former PM Vojislav Kostunica's 
Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS) has been uncharacteristically 
 
BELGRADE 00000718  002 OF 002 
 
 
silent, while their electoral list partner Velimir Ilic (New Serbia) 
questioned ICTY's fairness. 
 
¶7. (SBU) Both the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and G-17 Plus 
hailed the arrest, with G-17 Plus calling it "proof that Serbia is 
oriented toward the future and prepared to face its past."  Bosniak 
leaders in Serbia's Sandzak region welcomed the move; Party of 
Democratic Action (SDA) Vice President Semsudin Kucevic told us "We 
hoped this day would have come much sooner, but we are glad it is 
finally here." 
 
Minimal Public Reaction 
----------------------- 
 
¶8. (U) Public reaction has been minimal so far.  Early on July 22, 
police broke up a group of about a dozen youth in Republic Square 
wearing images of Karadzic and the symbol for ultra right wing group 
Obraz, protesting Karadzic's capture. Another similar group marched 
across from the Special Court, which is now being protected by a 
large group of gendarmerie.  Another Obraz protest is scheduled for 
July 22 at 1700 local on Republic Square. 
 
¶9.  Police chief Milorad Veljovic contacted post late on July 21 to 
inform us that he had ordered heightened police protection for the 
U.S. and UK Embassies in anticipation of possible public reaction. 
"The Minister himself (Dacic) has ordered us to protect diplomatic 
establishments, especially the U.S. Embassy," he told us again on 
July 22. 
 
Implications for EU Accession 
----------------------------- 
 
¶10. (U) Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said in a  statement on July 22 
prior to a meeting of the EU Foreign Ministers in Brussels that the 
arrest was a sign that the new government took EU integration 
seriously.  "We are truly dedicated to the peace and the rule of 
international law, both in regard to our cooperation with The Hague 
Tribunal and in regard to the defense of our sovereignty over 
Kosovo," Jeremic said. 
 
¶11. (U) Local press are reporting EU foreign policy chief Javier 
Solana's July 22 statement that ICTY Chief Serge Brammertz would 
almost certainly judge Serbia to be in full cooperation with the 
Hague (reftel).  Belgrade ICTY head Mihov would not comment on 
Solana's statement but said the two had spoken.  Brammertz  was 
scheduled to visit Serbia July 23, but we have been informed that he 
postponed his visit due to Karadzic's arrest. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶12. (SBU) The arrest of one of ICTY's most sought-after war 
criminals is a major step forward in Serbia's cooperation with The 
Hague tribunal and toward European integration.  The move required 
significant political resolve on the part of a government that is 
frequently paralyzed by the prospect of negative public backlash. 
Dacic's comments also indicate that the public rhetoric is being 
carefully calibrated to absolve the SPS of responsibilty for the 
arrest.  As some "talking heads" have already predicted that the 
timing of the arrest to coincide with the planned Brammertz visit 
and the EU Foreign Ministers' meeting will be seen cynically in 
Washington, it will be crucial for the United States to continue to 
emphasize the message of the July 21 White House statement that the 
move was an important demonstration of the Serbian Government's 
determination to honor its ICTY commitments.  Such recognition will 
help encourage the new Serbian government to demonstrate similar 
political courage on the range of other tasks it now faces, from EU 
accession to Kosovo.  As Charge told Stefanovic on July 22, "this is 
excellent news, but our bilateral agenda remains problematic."  End 
Comment. 
 
BRUSH