POLITICS DECIDES ON WHETHER GENERAL MLADIĆ WILL BE RELEASED FOR MEDICAL TREATMENT IN SERBIA

BELGRADE, MAY 5 /SRNA/ – International criminal law professor Sreto Nogo told SRNA that all legal conditions have been met for General Ratko Mladić to be sent to Serbia for medical treatment, but that such a decision will only be made if the United States orders the "ad hoc tribunal officials" in The Hague to do so.

Nogo assessed that international criminal law has long become political and hypocritical, and that politics decides everything, including the General Mladić case, whose health condition is deteriorating.

"He will be released only if The Hague is ordered to do so. Otherwise, we can cry for five days, we can present tons and tons of evidence that rights have been violated, that there is not a single letter of law in the case of General Mladić. I think it is clear to everyone that this is the terror of force, not of law," Nogo emphasized.

Regarding the announcement that Belgrade will raise the issue of Mladić’s treatment in Serbia before the UN Security Council in June, Nogo said he is not very optimistic about that either.

"The ad hoc tribunal is a political body, so it can only be politically instructed," Nogo said.

He pointed out that it is evident in Mladić's case that there is no goodwill to respect the fundamental human right - the right to life.

"No great illusions should be held about the UN either, as it is increasingly aligning itself with the leading world powers. Therefore, I am not very optimistic," Nogo said.

The legal team of General Ratko Mladić submitted a request on April 23 for conditional release on humanitarian grounds, given his worsening health condition.

On Saturday, May 2, General Mladić was transferred from the detention unit to a civilian hospital in The Hague on suspicion of a stroke.

Since doctors did not confirm that he had suffered a stroke, he was returned to the detention hospital, and according to his family, his condition is the most serious so far.

General Ratko Mladić suffered a stroke on April 10, and his already serious condition has further worsened, as he has severe neurological, cardiovascular, and kidney problems.

Since 2024, he has been in the detention hospital in The Hague, where he is receiving palliative care.