BRUSSELS, Feb. 27 (UPI) -- European Union foreign ministers Monday cracked the whip at Balkan countries queuing up to join the bloc, telling Serbia to catch indicted war criminal Gen. Ratko Mladic or risk seeing its membership bid frozen
Meeting in Brussels, foreign ministers said they "noted with concern" recent comments made by U.N. chief prosecutor Carla del Ponte in which she accused Belgrade of failing to cooperate with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.
There was a flurry of speculation last week that Gen. Mladic had been, or was about to be, captured by Serb forces. But the war crimes fugitive, who has spent almost a decade on the run, still remains at large -- to the consternation of both Del Ponte and the European Union.
In a statement, the EU's top diplomats warned that talks aimed at eventual European Union membership for Serbia would be suspended if Mladic and fellow fugitive Radovan Karadzic were not brought to justice "without delay." Asked to explain what this meant in concrete terms, EU officials said that Belgrade had just over one month to capture the two alleged war criminals or see its membership application put on ice.
"The message has to be unless these countries like Serbia cooperate with the criminal tribunal in The Hague, and hand over indicted war criminals, they cannot expect the full cooperation from the European Union in return," said British Foreign Minister Jack Straw. Brussels adopted the same hardline approach towards EU applicant Croatia last year, freezing membership talks with Zagreb until Gen. Ante Gotovina was caught.
Montenegro, a former Yugoslav republic that is formally tied to Serbia, was also bluntly told to follow the European Union's recipe for greater autonomy or risk international isolation.
The tiny republic of 600,000, which is viewed by the European Union as a safe haven for people traffickers and cigarette smugglers, is due to hold a referendum on whether to break free from Serbia in April or May. The government says if 40 percent of the population backs independence, it will split. But EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said over the weekend he would only accept the result if 55 percent of Montenegrins vote for independence. His stance was endorsed by foreign ministers Monday.
Belgrade fears that if Montenegro is allowed to secede from its federation with Serbia, it will be more difficult to hold on to Kosovo. Talks on the future status of the U.N.-administered province are currently underway in Vienna. Most analysts predict that some form of independence will be granted to Kosovo, which witnessed a bloody war between Serbs and ethnic Albanians in 1999, before the yearend.
Foreign ministers also turned their attention to the Middle East Monday, following the outbreak of sectarian violence in Iraq, the recent victory of radical Islamist group Hamas in Palestinian Authority elections and Iran's decision to restart nuclear processing.
With the Palestinian Authority facing a meltdown in its finances, the European Commission moved to plug the gap Monday, pledging $141 million to meet the basic short-term needs of the population. The EU executive earmarked $47 million to ensure the authority's water and electricity bills are paid and allocated $76 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency. The rest of the money will help the Palestinian Authority pay its workers.
The European Union's stance is in sharp contrast with the United States -- which has called for the authority to hand back $50 million in donations -- and Israel, which stopped transfers of $50 million a month.
However, the commission rejected accusations that it had broken with the tough approach to a Hamas government adopted by international partners last month. "We are watching political developments in the Palestinian Territories very closely," said EU foreign affairs commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner, adding that the new funds were destined for the interim government, not a Hamas-led one. "How we are able to help the Palestinians in the future will depend to a large extent on the decisions taken by their newly elected government; whether its members support non violence, recognize Israel and stand by existing agreements."
Turning to Iraq, European foreign ministers chastised Baghdad's political leaders for failing to agree a stable government in the face of mounting inter-ethnic strife. Urging the country's politicians to "match the courage of the Iraqi people," who braved violence and intimidation to vote in Dec. 15 elections, ministers said: "This display of trust by the Iraqi people in a democratic system deserves to be met by the formation of a government of national unity which will work for the political and economic reconstruction of Iraq in a spirit of reconciliation."
