Commissioner Patten's Statement on ICC and UN Mission mandate in Bosnia-Herzegovina

Answering to a question, the Commissioner declared the following:

'There are four member States who are actively participating at this very moment in the UN Security Council in the search for a solution to this problem. I just want to make two points clear:

The EU is wholeheartedly and unreservedly a supporter of the establishment of the International Criminal Court (ICC). We are sorry that the US walked away from this international undertaking. The International Criminal Court is the most important advance for international law since the establishment of the United Nations. We will allow nobody to water down the commitments contained in the ICC treaty.

We are committed to stability in the Balkans region. We have invested heavily in reaching and preserving that stability. We hope to find agreement with the United States, ensuring that Bosnia gets the input that it deserves.

We disagreed with the United States over Kyoto, but we didn't sit down and wait. We ratified and encouraged others to do so as well. The same thing has happened with the International Criminal Court.

Question: Can the EU fill the void in Bosnia?

We are extremely aware of the difficult situation in Bosnia. I will see lord Ashdown this evening I hope that we can find a solution in the UN in the next couple of hours.

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• Commissioner Patten's Statement on the ICC at the EP (25/9/2002)
• Amb. Richardson's (2001-05) Speech on "What Unites and What Divides the Transatlantic Community?" (25/9/2002)
• EU Presidency Statement - The ICC (9/9/2002)
• EU Presidency Statement - Bosnia and Herzegovina (10/7/2002)
• Commissioner Patten Interview on the International Criminal Court (9/7/2002)
• Commissioner Byrne's Speech on the American Service members' Protection Act (ASPA) (3/7/2002)