Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06ROME2099
2006-07-21 18:28:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Rome
Cable title:  

ICTY CHIEF PROSECUTOR CARLA DEL PONTE IN ROME

Tags:  PREL PGOV SR YI IT 
pdf how-to read a cable
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TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5454
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RUEHBW/AMEMBASSY BELGRADE PRIORITY 0274
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 1247
RUEHMO/AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PRIORITY 4280
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RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
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RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY 4389
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L ROME 002099 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/25/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV SR YI IT
SUBJECT: ICTY CHIEF PROSECUTOR CARLA DEL PONTE IN ROME

Classified By: Classified by David D. Pearce, Political Minister Counse
lor, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L ROME 002099

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/25/2016
TAGS: PREL PGOV SR YI IT
SUBJECT: ICTY CHIEF PROSECUTOR CARLA DEL PONTE IN ROME

Classified By: Classified by David D. Pearce, Political Minister Counse
lor, for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary. On July 18, ICTY Chief Prosecutor Carla Del
Ponte visited Rome to discuss the new Serbian action plan for
compliance with the tribunal. Del Ponte told the Italians
that she expected the action plan to result in the arrest and
transfer of Mladic to the tribunal. The Italians urged Del
Ponte to give the EU some flexibility in restarting EU SAA
talks. D'Alema told Del Ponte that if the action plan does
not produce results, the SAA talks could always be frozen.
Under the current circumstances, the EU has no leverage in
its dealings with the Serbian government as Kosovo status
talks approach a critical phase. A skeptical Del Ponte told
D'Alema that she would reserve judgment until the operational
details of the plan are announced. End summary.


2. (C) Carla Del Ponte met with FM D'Alema on July 18 to
discuss the Serbian action plan for ICTY compliance.
According to Raimondo De Cardona, Director of the Balkans
Office of the Italian MFA, D'Alema told Del Ponte that the
GOI fully supported the work of the ICTY and saw compliance
as a precondition to SAA membership talks. A hard-line on
determining compliance and the suspension of the SAA talks,
however, was denying the EU of leverage over the Serbian
government and was preventing the international community
from supporting the democratic forces during the Kosovo
status talks. As it was, the GOI considered the freezing of
the SAA talks a mistake. D'Alema argued that this action
plan could provide a way out for the ICTY to certify that
Serbia is in compliance and allow the SAA talks to restart.
D'Alema noted that for the first time, the GOS had declared
the arrest and transfer of Mladic as a key point of
cooperation with the tribunal. If the action plan failed to
produce results, the SAA talks could once again be frozen.


3. (C) Del Ponte maintained that Serbia's ICTY requirements
had to include the arrest and transfer of Mladic. Del Ponte
was concerned that the recently announced action plan would
not lead to tangible results in delivering Mladic to the
tribunal. She noted that Serbia had been through this
exercise before and it had seemed to be nothing more than
window dressing to meet compliance deadlines. She recognized,
however, that the international community needed to engage
Serbia in order to push it in the right direction. Although
she remained skeptical on the action plan, she told D'Alema
that she would wait to see the operational details of the
action plan.


4. (C) Comment. The GOI recognizes that the Serbian
Government has failed to live up to previous pledges of ICTY
compliance in the past. It also recognizes that various
forms of conditionality have proven effective in forcing
Belgrade's hand with regard to transferring indictees. It
remains concerned, however, that the current Serbian
government will fall before the final stages of Kosovo status
negotiations and believe that offering Serbia some breathing
room could ease the pressure.
SPOGLI