The Hague Tribunal likely to be disavowed after Milosevic’s death

The death of the ex-president of Yugoslavia Slobodan Milosevic in The Hague has received an enormously extensive coverage all over the world. This incident may trigger a revision of the whole system of international tribunals which have been fulfilling political orders throughout their existence.

Photo: The Hague Tribunal likely to be disavowed after Milosevic’s death

The Hague Tribunal likely to be disavowed after Milosevic’s death

A well-known Russian scientist of politics and TV journalist Mikhail Leontiev believes that no one will bear responsibility for Slobodan Milosevic’s death. At the same time, the incident has caused a very serious damage to the reputation and the functionality of The Hague Tribunal.

“If it is proved that it was a natural death, no one will be held responsible. The tribunal, however, carries the moral responsibility,” Mikhail Leontiev told Pravda.Ru.

The journalist added the Milosevic's death coincided with the rejection of the offer for Slobodan Milosevic to undergo a medical treatment in Russia. “The Hague Tribunal has definitely found itself in a shaky situation. Things are not going well for them – they have not been able to prove anything,” Leontiev said.

At the same time, Leontiev believes that Milosevic’s death was good for The Hague Tribunal. “They have not managed to prove Milosevic’s participation in any of the war crimes,” the scientist of politics said. Leontiev referred to Slobodan Milosevic’s brother, Borislav, who claimed earlier that Milosevic would be killed.

“Milosevic was fulfilling his constitutional debt when he started that war. In fact, he did what any political leader was supposed to do according to the Constitution. Milosevic was trying to preserve the integrity of the state,” Leontiev said.

The specialist harshly criticized the structure of The Hague Tribunal, as well as the nature of other international court instances. “The idea of the tribunal was rotten from the very beginning of its existence. One cannot judge history. One can say it a thousand times that the organizers of the tribunal had no moral and legal rights to judge the Serbs because they are insiders, but not independent observers,” the scientist of politics said.

According to Leontiev, the idea of international tribunals has been blemished with the fact that only one country that actively lobbies those tribunals does not acknowledge international jurisdiction over itself. This country is called the United States of America . It gives every reason to disavow all international tribunals,” Mikhail Leontiev concluded.

Sergei Malinin

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