Brammertz: Serbia to alter the strategy in search for Hague fugitives

Belgrade June, 09, 2010. (Serbia Today) - Hague Chief Prosecutor Serge Brammertz will propose in his report on Serbia’s cooperation that Belgrade alter its strategy in the search for Hague fugitives, reported Serbian television B92. Brammertz has already submitted his report to ABOU Serbian in cooperation with the Tribunal to United Nations diplomats. At the same time Daily Politika writes that Holland will support the ratification of the SAA with Belgrade if Serge Brammertz’s cooperation report is positive. As Serbian media reported, Brammertz will reiterate that Serbia’s efforts in trying to locate the remaining fugitives are continuing, but that there should be a change in strategy in the search for Ratko Mladić and Goran Hadžić. According to the document, which B92 has seen, Brammertz will recommend that Belgrade spread its search into different directions instead of focusing their work on individual investigations. Brammertz will also state that there is no proof to justify the belief that Mladić is not in Serbia. Brammertz will commend the cooperation of the National Council for Hague Cooperation which has met all of the Hague Prosecution’s demands regarding the exchange of documents. He also is expected to praise the fact that 3,000 pages of Mladić’s diary were handed over to the Hague office, adding that the information contained in these pages is of great importance to a number of trials. Brammertz will be reporting to the UN Security Council and EU ministers on Serbia's cooperation with the Hague Tribunal some time in June Daily Politika has learned from inside the cabinet of Holland’s foreign minister that the parliamentary elections in the country on June 9 will not be an obstacle in supporting the ratification of the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) between Serbia and the EU. “If you are asking what will happen if Brammertz is content with cooperation, then it is possible that Holland’s answer will be positive”, a source from Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen’s cabinet Gijs Korevaar told the daily. “If Brammertz is satisfied as he was when he wrote the positive report in December, we will not reject the start of ratification”, he said. Hague Chief Prosecutor Brammertz will give his next report to the UN Security Council on June 18, when EU foreign ministers will meet for the last time under the Spanish presidency. Belgium will assume the EU presidency on July 1