The extradition of
former President Milosevic by Belgrade authorities marks a turning point in the
democratic transition of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. It also signals the
deepening authority of the movement towards international accountability. The
indictment of Milosevic while he was head of state, and now his surrender by
Yugoslav authorities, affirms what international criminal law has held since
Nuremberg—that rank and official capacity are no shield from the process of law.
The surrender also presages the importance of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which is likely to be established within two years. Like the Yugoslav tribunal, the ICC will rely on state cooperation to be effective; but as the Milosevic arrest shows, not even the highest-ranking officials will be able to shield themselves from accountability. The ICC will entrench the principle, so well understood in Belgrade, that states will have to cooperate in doing justice if they are to be accepted as full players in the international community. Once established, the ICC will quickly become the only means of holding perpetrators of atrocities to account. US critics of the ICC should learn this, and realize that their fears about the ICC are largely misplaced and exaggerated. The ICC will assist democratic transitions, strengthen the rule of law, affirm the dignity of victims and support a secure environment for peacekeepers. It deserves US support. The US has been a major supporter of ad hoc efforts to secure justice, of which the Milosevic surrender is the most recent fruit; US support for the ICC is the logical next extension of this policy.