Eye on EU

It wasn't long after suspected war criminal Ratko Mladic's arrest was confirmed by Serbian President Boris Tadic on Thursday that the congratulations began pouring in. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Mladic's arrest was "good news for all of Europe," while European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said it was "a very positive development" for the rule of law in Serbia.

Mladic is the most wanted fugitive of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague, and his arrest ends a 16-year manhunt. Mladic was commander of the Bosnian Serb army during the 1992-1995 Bosnian war.

He has been charged by the ICTY with genocide for his role in the Srebrenica massacre and has now been cleared for extradition to the Hague to stand trial.

On Friday, after a medical evaluation, a Serbian judge determined Mladic was fit to stand trial, despite claims from Mladic's family that he was too ill to be sent to The Hague.

Mladic's lawyer said he would appeal the decision on Monday, saying his client should not be moved until his health improves.

Sooner or later, though, it is likely that Mladic will stand trial - an outcome that casts a favorable light on Serbia. The seizure of Mladic - along with the arrests of other suspected war criminals - was a major condition for Serbia's accession to the European Union.

A step in the right direction

Now this condition has been fulfilled, and EU officials have welcomed the development as a step in the right direction for Serbia.

"Justice is being served, and a great obstacle on the Serbian road to the European Union has been removed," said EU Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Füle.

Serbia had been criticized not only by the EU for failing to bring Mladic to justice. The ICTY's chief prosecutor, Serge Brammertz, was planning to deliver a report to the UN Security Council on June 6 outlining shortcomings in Serbia's search for Mladic. On Thursday, Brammertz said Serbia had "fulfilled one of its international obligations," but added that it was long overdue.

Still a work in progress

Despite general agreement that Mladic's arrest reflects positively on Serbia's efforts to cooperate with the ICTY and meet EU accession criteria, some hurdles still remain on the road to EU accession.

For example, there is one more fugitive on the ICTY's list - Goran Hadzic, who is wanted for his role in the Serbia-Croatia conflict from 1991-1995. Chancellor Merkel joined calls made by Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor for Serbia to find Hadzic and bring him to justice.

But the biggest sticking point in terms of Serbia's progress towards joining the EU is the recognition of Kosovo. In 2008, Kosovo declared independence from Serbia. But the government in Belgrade still regards Kosovo as a Serbian province, despite the fact that it has been recognized as an independent state by most of the member countries of NATO, the EU and the OECD.

"I think it would be completely wrong to say 'now Serbia and President Tadic have finally earned an open door to Europe,'" said Wolfgang Ischinger, head of the Munich Security Conference, a forum for international security policy, in an interview with German public radio. "There is still a big obstacle that must be taken care of, and it's Serbia's reluctance to seriously address the Kosovo question and find a solution."

Judging from Mladic's arrest, and the 2008 arrest in Belgrade of Radovan Karadzic, former political leader of the Bosnian Serbs, now on trial at the ICTY, Serbia appears to be toeing the EU line. How it handles Kosovo will be a decisive point.

"The biggest question is of course the status of Kosovo," agreed Rosa Balfour of the European Policy Center. "But even there we have seen some positive signs, because Belgrade and Pristina have started a dialogue. What I would hope is that Serbia does not squander this capital that it has accumulated by being an unconstructive partner in the region."

Author: Matt Zuvela
Editor: Susan Houlton