Posted on 10/22/2005 2:33:46 PM PDT by shpirag
BELGRADE, Serbia-Montenegro (AP) - Lawmakers Friday elected a reported ally of notorious war crimes fugitive Ratko Mladic as Serbia-Montenegro's new defense minister. Zoran Stankovic, former director of the Belgrade military hospital, was elected with 72 votes in the 126-member assembly.
Stankovic's candidacy was put forward by Serbia, the country's larger republic, after an equipment purchase scandal forced the previous minister to resign.
Some analysts believe Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica proposed Stankovic in hopes that he would persuade Mladic to surrender to the Netherlands-based U.N. war crimes tribunal.
Stankovic, 51, is believed to have close ties to Mladic, a former Bosnian Serb army commander allegedly responsible for Europe's worst carnage since World War II - the massacre of 8,000 Muslims in Srebrenica in 1995.
Mladic allegedly is hiding in Serbia under protection from the hard-liners in the military.
The hunt for Mladic would continue, but "it is not the job of the defense minister to chase Ratko Mladic all over the mountains," Stankovic said, speaking on B92 television shortly after his appointment.
Western officials have demanded Mladic's hand-over by December. Belgrade's failure to capture and extradite Mladic to the U.N. court stands in the way of its chances for EU membership.
Under the loose union that replaced Yugoslavia, Serbia and Montenegro retain a common army and council of ministers. Both republics have to agree on appointments in these institutions.
http://www.freeb92.net/english/news/index.php?&nav_category=36&nav_id=33126&order=hrono&style=headlines
Last year in the US, an ex-general with links to Mladic ran for President, with the encouragement of Bill Clinton. Fortunately even the Democrat primary voters were able to recognize that he was nuts.
General stankovic`s relations with Mladic is that Stankovic was ormer chief of Millitary Medical Academy, Serbia, Belgrade, nad that he have done the authopsy of Mladics murdered daughter.
Can I wish that someone have that kind of relation to anyone?
Stankovic is patologis, and forensic expert, replacing Davinic, behind whom was party named "G-17+" with 0,7% of woters, financed by Soros. Replacing Soros`es men Davinic, as defence minister, Stankovic made an enemy with "freeB92" TV station founded by "OpenSociety Foundations" by Soros.
Leftie here, Leftie there, missery evrywhere.
VR, Clarc was trying to be a peacemaker, a diplomat, and not what some pictures without explanation might tell to the people with two jobs and with no time to read or care about reading the context of those times.
But there is also a high chance that he would have been a wiser president, instead of the "bring it on", cowboy leader we have now.
Kronos, I'm not doing as bad as you might think, just trying to walk in your footsteps and I will try to avoid provocative remarks and will try to focusing more on clear understandings.
The fact that Milosevis was against his appointment is a good indicator that Stankovic is a better choice. He could even be a good, changed and the Right person.
http://www.news.balkansecurity.com/news/index.php?l=en&q=vest&id=128844&r=politika&login=&passwd=
http://www.iwpr.net/index.pl?archive/tri/tri_424_1_eng.txt
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“He never opposed Sloba. A few doctors from the Military Medical Academy visited Milosevic in The Hague several times while Stankovic was director of the hospital. But Sloba was furious when he heard that Stankovic had met with Carla Del Ponte and promised to have Mladic in The Hague by the end of the year. Milosevic, noticeably upset, spoke to Mrkonjic by telephone and instructed those who support him not to vote for anyone who is prepared to betray Serbia and trade with the tribunal,” said the source.
Stankovic, the former head of the elite military clinic in Serbia and Montenegro, the Military Medical Academy, performed the autopsy on Mladic’s daughter who committed suicide in Serbia in 1999. This created a bond between Mladic and the military doctor.
Stankovic told the Belgrade-based radio B92 that he was in favour of taking all necessary steps towards cooperation with the tribunal but that no miracles should be expected of him personally.
"I am not that powerful. If I can get Mladic to surrender or simply come in contact with him after the maybe ten times I've run into him in my life, then it would seem that I have extremely great abilities," said Stankovic.
The editor of the Belgrade biweekly Defence & Security, Aleksander Radic, believes the provisional release of Lukic and the appointment of Stankovic could aid Mladic’s voluntary surrender.
“These are only elements that can help, but they themselves will not resolve this issue,” he said.
“This is not something Stankovic can resolve on his own. He’s not the only one who once knew Mladic.
“All the key Serbian officials must participate in the efforts – the Serbian prime minister, the minister of the police and the director of the Security Information Agency.”
Political analyst Djordje Vukadinovic said although there appears to be a considerable warming of relations between Belgrade and the tribunal, the latest events concerning Lukic and Stankovic may not be enough to resolve the Mladic issue. However, he said if the authorities were to opt for an arrest once establishing that Mladic is in Serbia, it would be less politically risky than a few months ago.
“A possible arrest is fraught with some political risk, but the level of this risk is much lower now,” said Vukadinovic.
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