Olli Rehn, the EU's commissioner for enlargement (file photo) (AFP)
May 2, 2006 -- Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn says he believes the European Union has no other option but to halt talks on closer links with Serbia after Belgrade failed to deliver war crimes indictee Ratko Mladic.
Rehn spoke today at a news conference in Brussels.
"The current facts are clear enough," he said. "We don't see Ratko Mladic in The Hague and, to our understanding, there is no full cooperation with The Hague tribunal. That means that we don't seem to have any other options than calling off the negotiations with Serbia on the Stabilization and Association Agreement."
The EU had given Belgrade until the end of April to arrest and send the former Bosnian Serb wartime commander to the UN war crimes tribunal.
Rehn said he would consult with UN war crimes prosecutor Carla del Ponte tomorrow before making a formal decision.
(Reuters)