Mladic ‘gave up ally’ to save himself

GENERAL Ratko Mladic, now the Hague’s other most wanted man, gave up information leading to the capture and arrest of ally Radovan Karadzic, it was reported yesterday.

Mladic, Karadzic’s military commander, is one of two Balkans war crimes suspects still on the run.

With international pressure on Serbia to secure his arrest, the Daily Telegraph website reported that Mladic has long been in negotiations with those hunting him over the terms of his capture and that he fed vital information that led to the arrest of Karadzic on Monday. The website reported that Mladic “gave information [on Karadzic’s whereabouts] to save himself”.

The paper said that according to a source close to the German foreign intelligence service, the BND, Mladic is determined to avoid going on trial at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) at the Hague. He wants to be tried at a local court in Serbia, where he is still regarded as a hero by some.

“Mladic gave some information on Karadzic, probably several months ago to save himself,” sources told the website. “That means he knows there will be a trial.”

It had been widely thought that Mladic’s capture would be secured before that of Karadzic due to better intelligence on his whereabouts.

A new era in relations between Serbia and the west beckons as Belgrade reaped the diplomatic rewards from the surprise arrest of Karadzic.

Serbia’s new pro-western government won plaudits from Brussels and other western capitals and built momentum for the rapid inclusion of Serbia, the pivotal state in the Balkans, into European structures.

EU foreign ministers and officials called for Serbia to be put on the fast track to membership. “This is a very good thing for the rapprochement of Serbia with the European Union,” said Bernard Kouchner of France, currently chairing the EU.

Serbia built on that rapprochement by stating that it would return ambassadors to EU countries that recognised the independence of the breakaway state of Kosovo in February. Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic said his government was moving to arrest Mladic. He said Serbia would “co-operate fully” with the tribunal, adding: “European integration is the utmost priority of this government.

“I think we have demonstrated that we are truly committed to international law.”

But “getting Mladic could be more dangerous than getting Karadzic. Probably he still has a friend or two”, admitted one official.