VZCZCXRO8718
PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN
RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHBW #0770/01 2111838
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 291838Z JUL 08
FM AMEMBASSY BELGRADE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0232
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 000770 
 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/SCE (D. SCHROEDER, K. KOKTA), CA/OCS/ACS (O. KINDER), 
L/LEI (P. GUTHERIE), L/DL (C. BROWN), L/CA (G. BRANCATO), CA/OCS/PRI 
(E. BETANCOURT) 
 
SARAJEVO FOR LEGATT 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CJAN PREL PGOV ODIP EAID SR
SUBJECT: SERBIA: EMBASSY REQUESTS SERBIAN GOVERNMENT TO RETURN 
KOVACEVIC 
 
REF: A) BELGRADE 653, B) BELGRADE 671, C) BELGRADE 700 
 
Summary 
------- 
 
¶1.  (SBU) In meetings with the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and 
Justice, post has reinforced the USG request for the return of 
Miladin Kovacevic to the United States to stand trial on charges of 
assaulting Amcit Bryan Steinhauer in a bar in Binghamton, NY.  The 
Charge has emphasized the responsibility of the Serbian Government 
to fulfill the commitment of its official representative that 
Kovacevic appear in Binghamton court.  Although the Ministry of 
Foreign Affairs has not been willing to explore creative options for 
resolving the case, preferring instead to highlight its efforts to 
punish its employees for abuse of authority, the Ministry of Justice 
has expressed willingness to explore "extraordinary" measures and 
has invited post's Resident Legal Advisor to participate in a July 
31 meeting of legal experts to discuss the case.  End Summary. 
 
Request for GOS to Return Kovacevic 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) On July 22, Charge presented a diplomatic note to 
Ambassador Branko Radosevic, Assistant Minister and Director of 
Consular Affairs at the MFA, reiterating the USG's July 1 formal 
request (Ref A) for the return of Miladin Kovacevic to the United 
States by August 1 to stand trial for the May 4 assault of Bryan 
Steinhauer in a New York bar.  She emphasized that the United States 
was requesting that the Government of Serbia fulfill the commitment 
of its official representative to ensure that Kovacevic appeared in 
court.  Radosevic stated he would convey the U.S. request to the 
Ministry of Justice.  He also informed the Charge that the Serbian 
prosecutor was investigating the actions of Vice Consul Igor 
Milosevic, who issued Kovacevic an emergency passport and provided 
the presiding judge his "solemn promise" that Kovacevic would not 
leave the United States, and his supervisor Consul General Slobodan 
Nenadovic. 
 
Ministry of Justice Willing to Explore Options 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Charge met with Slobodan Homen, State Secretary of the 
Ministry of Justice, on July 29 to discuss the Kovacevic case.  She 
was accompanied by the Resident Legal Advisor (RLA) and Pol Chief. 
Homen, who was fully briefed on the case, said that he had received 
the July 22 diplomatic note from the MFA and had forwarded it to the 
state prosecutor for review.  Charge emphasized the extraordinary 
nature of the case due to the role of a Serbian Government official 
in helping Kovacevic evade justice, and stressed that the Serbian 
Government must take responsibility for its agent's actions by 
returning Kovacevic. 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Homen explained that while Serbia's Criminal Procedures 
Code (CPC) prohibits the extradition of Serbian citizens, and the 
U.S.-Serbia extradition treaty does not require it, the Serbian 
government was nevertheless "not happy to have such a dangerous 
person on the streets" and wanted the USG's help in prosecuting 
Kovacevic for the "brutal beating" of Bryan Steinhauer.  He shared a 
letter from the state prosecutor expressing the desire to try 
Kovacevic in Serbia and requesting the MOJ to convey the request to 
the United States through diplomatic channels.  The RLA told Homen 
that the Embassy would pass the request to the appropriate U.S. 
officials, but the New York prosecutor had already stated that he 
was not willing to have the case tried abroad. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) The RLA explained that the United States had not submitted 
an extradition request because we understood that Serbian law as now 
written prevents Kovacevic's extradition.  We were instead asking 
for an extraordinary solution given the extraordinary circumstances. 
 Homen replied that the Serbian government needed time to obtain a 
conviction of Vice Consul Milosevic for misuse of authority in order 
to have legal grounds to take action against Kovacevic.  In response 
to our assertion that the two cases should not be linked, Homen said 
that he would gather a team of legal experts to discuss other 
options for returning Kovacevic.  (Within two hours of the meeting, 
Homen invited the RLA to participate in the legal experts meeting on 
July 31.) He also said that he would talk to Minister of Justice 
Snezana Malovic about the possibility of changing the CPC to permit 
the extradition of Serbian citizens.  (Several working groups are 
now drafting updates for the CPC to bring it into line with 
international standards; changes to the extradition provisions may 
 
BELGRADE 00000770  002 OF 002 
 
 
eventually be necessary for EU accession.) 
 
¶6.  (SBU) The RLA informed Homen that Kovacevic would face 
additional federal bail jumping charges if he did not appear in 
court by August 2.  It was for this reason that the United States 
was requesting his return by August 1. 
 
Press Coverage More Balanced 
---------------------------- 
 
¶7.  (U) Coverage of the Kovacevic case in the Serbian media has 
become more balanced in recent days, as a result of the Steinhauer 
family's press conference in New York and post's efforts to counter 
misinformation spread by Kovacevic's lawyer.  On July 25 and 26, 
electronic and print media carried excerpts of the statements by 
Steinhauer's parents about his condition, as well as the New York 
Daily News reports that Serbia had been given an "ultimatum" to 
return Kovacevic.  Several major dailies also carried a statement by 
post's press attache confirming that the Embassy had delivered a 
diplomatic note to the Serbian MFA which was neither an ultimatum or 
request for extradition but rather a request for the Serbian 
government "to act upon the Interpol notice that has already been 
processed, arrest Kovacevic and return him to the United States in 
accordance with the commitments made by the Serbian government's 
official representative that Kovacevic would appear in court." 
Several print media also reported that Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk 
Jeremic called Senator Hilary Clinton over the weekend regarding the 
case. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) The Serbian Government faces a no-win situation with 
Kovacevic.  If they hand him over, they will face a firestorm of 
criticism from a public that still thinks that war criminal Radovan 
Karadzic is a hero.  If they don't hand him over, Serbia will 
reinforce its international image of a pariah state in defiance of 
international norms.  Homen's initiative, although a long shot, 
appears to be a good faith effort to ensure that the new 
pro-European government does not end up being written off by the USG 
as no better than its predecessors.  End Comment. 
 
BRUSH