Page 17088
1 Friday, 28 February 2003
2 [Open session]
3 [The witness entered court]
4 [The accused entered court]
5 --- Upon commencing at 9.08 a.m.
6 JUDGE MAY: Yes, Mr. Milosevic.
7 WITNESS: HERBERT OKUN [Resumed]
8 Cross-examined by Mr. Milosevic: [Continued]
9 Q. [No interpretation]
10 JUDGE KWON: We are not getting any interpretation.
11 THE INTERPRETER: Can you hear the English? Can you hear?
12 JUDGE KWON: Yes.
13 JUDGE MAY: Yes. Mr. Milosevic, we're having some trouble with
14 the interpretation. Can we have the question again, please.
15 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
16 Q. Mr. Okun, can you hear me now? Can you hear the English?
17 A. Excuse me, Mr. Milosevic. I'm receiving the translation in
18 French.
19 THE INTERPRETER: Can you hear the English now?
20 THE WITNESS: Yes, I can.
21 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
22 Q. Yesterday, we started discussing your meeting in my office on the
23 13th of October, and we noted that I told you that a peaceful solution was
24 the only solution. Isn't that right?
25 A. Yes, you said that.
Page 17089
1 Q. And that Croatia and Slovenia had entered into a secessionist
2 undertaking. That's right, isn't it?
3 A. Yes, that's correct. You stated that.
4 Q. And furthermore, that in Croatia we saw the resurgence of Nazism
5 and fascism.
6 A. You stated that, and I entered it in the diary notes.
7 Q. And I also indicated to you on the occasion that any violent
8 change of borders was illegal, and you told me something along the
9 following lines, if I understood you correctly; that according to the
10 constitution, the republics enjoyed the right to make a decision on some
11 kind of separation on their part, and I asked you to indicate that
12 particular article of the constitution where this right was stated. I
13 don't know whether you can do so now. Can you point out the portion in
14 the constitution?
15 A. In response to that interchange yesterday, I noted that the
16 arbitration Tribunal of the European Community, when asked to reach a
17 decision on the state in which the former Yugoslavia found itself, reached
18 the decision that the state was in a process of dissolution and that,
19 subsequently, the decision was reached that the -- the states that were
20 seceding had the right to do so, that was their decision, and that is in
21 fact what happened, because the reality is they're all independent states,
22 they're all members of the United Nations today and widely recognised by
23 the international community. That is what ensued, yes.
24 Q. Yes. And as far as those facts are concerned, that they had truly
25 seceded is not being challenged. I was only asking about what the
Page 17090
1 constitution said, and that's where the crux of the matter lies, because
2 the international community committed a crime against Yugoslavia thereby.
3 Do you consider that that is so or not?
4 A. I don't -- I don't think it is within my competence to speculate
5 on whether the international community --
6 Q. All right, very well.
7 A. -- committed a crime. But, of course, that was your view at the
8 time. There is no question of that.
9 Q. And did I state loud and clear to you at the time that Serbia had
10 no territorial pretensions?
11 A. So you did.
12 Q. Did I also speak to you at the time about the great crimes and
13 pressure that was being brought to bear against them, the dismissals, the
14 violence against Serbs in Croatia?
15 A. You did.
16 Q. And did I draw your attention to the fact that history was
17 repeating itself from World War II when hundreds of thousands of Serbs
18 were killed in Croatia? Isn't that so?
19 A. So I heard you say.
20 Q. And did I also clearly indicate to you at the time that the
21 Yugoslav People's Army, as far as I knew, was just separating the warring
22 sides or sides in the conflict and that that was its exclusive role?
23 Isn't that right, Mr. Okun?
24 A. That was your contention, yes, that is correct. You stated that.
25 Q. And did I also tell you at the time that the Serbs in Croatia had
Page 17091
1 to have protection and that they had to have a special status accorded
2 them, because according to the constitutions of -- they were one of the
3 constituent peoples of the south Slav peoples, south Slav nations. Do you
4 happen to remember that?
5 A. Yes, I remember you stated that.
6 Q. And did I also tell you that according to my information, the
7 Yugoslav People's Army went into action only once it was attacked and
8 under no other conditions except when it was attacked?
9 A. Yes, you stated that.
10 Q. And didn't I also say at the time that the army was completely
11 neutral and that it avoided any ethnic clashes and conflicts or, rather,
12 that it endeavoured to prevent them and to separate the parties in
13 conflict regardless of the fact that the Serbs were the victims in the
14 violence that took place at that time in Croatia?
15 A. So I have heard you say.
16 Q. You mentioned or, rather, Vance mentioned the role of the army,
17 and I think that on the occasion we cleared up that matter. Did I tell
18 you on that occasion - and when I say "you" I don't mean you personally
19 but yourself and Cyrus Vance together - that we did not wish any kind of
20 Greater Serbia to be created?
21 A. That was your contention.
22 Q. Otherwise, you also had meetings with the top military leaders,
23 top military echelon, Veljko Kadijevic, the Federal Secretary for National
24 Defence and the Chief of the General Staff Blagoje Adzic; isn't that
25 right? On that same day, actually; right?
Page 17092
1 A. Yes.
2 Q. Is it true that General Kadijevic clearly indicated the desire of
3 the army to solve the issue peacefully?
4 A. He so stated.
5 Q. Did Kadijevic tell you unequivocally and quite resolutely that the
6 army wished to avoid a war?
7 A. That was the general thrust of his remarks.
8 Q. And is it true and correct that at that time they indicated to you
9 that there were blockades of the sea, the barracks, the airports, and that
10 they asked you to prevail upon NATO to deblock the garrisons?
11 A. There was no question that the issue of the blockaded JNA barracks
12 was very high, perhaps uppermost in General Kadijevic's mind. I'm not
13 sure whether he specifically asked that NATO do the unblocking, but he
14 certainly implored Secretary Vance and myself to do everything we could to
15 prevail upon the Croatian civil and military authorities to secure the
16 freedom of the blockaded JNA troops and their families.
17 Q. Well, he told you precisely all these things, and I'm reading from
18 your own block, that straight away, the barracks were to be deblocked and
19 that the Adriatic ports were to be deblocked, that the airspace be opened.
20 And he also told you that they did not deblock the garrisons but --
21 deblock the garrisons, but they had in fact blocked two more. And he also
22 told you on that occasion that they had taken control of over 100
23 garrisons during the cease-fire; isn't that right?
24 A. Yes. If it's in my diary notes, it's what he said. And I do
25 recall him stating that.
Page 17093
1 Q. And is it true that in The Hague, on the 15th of October, Milo
2 Djukanovic, the president -- the Prime Minister of the government of
3 Montenegro with whom you had a meeting also indicated to you the problem
4 of the violation of basic human rights of Serbs living in Croatia? Do you
5 remember that?
6 A. Yes, he stated that.
7 Q. If you happen to remember, did he also tell you that the Ustasha
8 movement had come to the fore and was rampant in Croatia again?
9 A. Could I consult my diary for that?
10 JUDGE MAY: Please, Mr. Okun, at any time.
11 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
12 Q. If this is -- poses a difficulty, I'll read it out. "The root of
13 problems in Croatia is the violation of elementary human rights of Serbs."
14 That's what Djukanovic said.
15 A. I see it now, Mr. President.
16 Q. [In English] [Previous translation continues]... "in Croatia
17 today. Fascism on rise."
18 A. Yes, Mr. President, I do so see that on page 93.
19 Q. Did he tell you on that occasion too that the status of the Serbs
20 had to be guaranteed by the international community, and you have that on
21 the next page. "Special status must be guaranteed by the international
22 institutions" is what you said. "International institutions."
23 A. Yes, that's correct. It's on page 94.
24 Q. Not to go further at this point, beyond the 15th of October. I'm
25 going to make a slight digression here and digress from your diaries,
Page 17094
1 because what I have to ask you about is the 18th of October and the
2 meeting in The Hague, the one that you testified about in your
3 examination-in-chief. I did not see this in your diary, but I would like
4 to ask you several questions in that regard.
5 Did I understand you correctly, Mr. Okun, to have said here that
6 Milosevic rejected Carrington's paper? And Mr. Groome asked you how you
7 understood this, and you said that you understood it as being a sign that
8 Serbia wanted war and that we demonstratively left the meeting of the
9 conference on Yugoslavia. That's what you said, I believe. Is that
10 right, Mr. Okun?
11 A. Yes, that's correct. It is noted in the diary on page 100 --
12 JUDGE MAY: Let the witness finish.
13 THE WITNESS: Yes, that's correct, and it is so noted in the diary
14 Vance mission 1, page 145.
15 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
16 Q. I don't know what was noted in the diary. I don't have that
17 particular page before me. I'll take a look at it later on. But as you
18 were there, were you not, and I'm sure you recall what happened there very
19 well.
20 So I'm now going to ask you this: First, about the fact that you
21 claim happened, that is to say that we left the hall, the conference hall,
22 and that we had a negative attitude towards the peace conference in
23 general.
24 Now, my question to you, Mr. Okun, is this: Did you not perhaps
25 mix something up there?
Page 17095
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Page 17096
1 A. I believe not, Mr. Milosevic.
2 Q. All right. Fine.
3 A. If I may continue.
4 JUDGE MAY: Yes.
5 THE WITNESS: The conference had six -- the entire Yugoslav
6 states. All the republics were there, with the full Presidency, that is
7 to say eight. Those who got up and walked out, that is to say physically
8 left the room - and this is on page 145 - were Mr. Jovic from Serbia,
9 Mr. Bajramovic from Kosovo, and Mr. Kostic from the Vojvodina. They were
10 the ones who physically walked out of the conference. So --
11 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
12 Q. That's something else again.
13 A. -- it is not incorrect to say that the Serbian representatives
14 walked out of the conference.
15 Q. They were not representatives of Serbia. They were members of the
16 Federal Presidency. So I'm now going to jog your memory, and I hope
17 you'll be able to remember when I do, because the vice-president of the
18 Federal Presidency, Branko Kostic, was President of Montenegro prior to
19 that, and later on, he was member of the Yugoslav state Presidency and
20 vice-president of the Presidency of Yugoslavia, as you know, I'm sure;
21 right?
22 A. Yes.
23 Q. Now, do you remember something that I would actually call an
24 incident; that the president of the conference, who was Lord Carrington,
25 did not allow Branko Kostic, who was the vice-president of the Yugoslav
Page 17097
1 state Presidency at the time, to speak, to take the floor at the meeting,
2 at the conference, and that he questioned his right and denied him the
3 right to speak on behalf of the Presidency of the SFRY and that he
4 demanded or, rather, the EEC, the European Community, questioned the
5 legitimacy of what they referred to as the Rump Presidency, considering
6 thereby, and I'm going to quote what they said, "That the legal
7 representative of Yugoslavia was only the source Presidency of a state and
8 not a Rump Presidency." Do you remember that?
9 A. Yes, it is so noted in my diary on page 144.
10 Q. Am I right, Mr. Okun, when I say that this kind of position on the
11 part of the EEC was unacceptable, because the highest organ of any state
12 in the world does not have the right to abdicate and leave the country to
13 chaos, and if due to a death, for example --
14 JUDGE MAY: This sounds like argument. Ambassador, is this
15 something you feel you can deal with? It sounds like comment.
16 THE WITNESS: I think it's not my -- I think it's not my place,
17 Your Honour, to retrospectively try and read the mind of the EC in October
18 1991. That was their decision.
19 JUDGE MAY: Whether it was right or wrong may be an issue in the
20 case. It may be something we'll have to decide. But for the moment, it's
21 not for the witness to comment on things like this. You can ask him what
22 happened, you can ask him about what's in his diary, but these sort of
23 argumentative comments are not for him to deal with.
24 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Mr. May, the witness was a diplomat,
25 a career diplomat for many years, and at the beginning of his testimony,
Page 17098
1 he himself said that he taught at university - I think you mentioned
2 Georgetown University, in fact - and that the subject he taught was
3 international law. Or perhaps some university in Washington, was it? Is
4 that right? So therefore, it is within his competence to answer the
5 question, in view of his presence at the international conference. He is
6 able to answer questions concerning international law. Therefore --
7 JUDGE MAY: Let me explain. The reason -- just a moment. The
8 reason he can't answer the question, or won't be allowed to, is that this
9 is a court of law, and in a court of law, the Judges are the deciders as
10 to the law. They decide what the law is, not witnesses, unless they're
11 experts in some particular field, and this doesn't apply in this case.
12 This witness is giving evidence about events which he dealt with.
13 Those you can ask him about. His opinions as an international lawyer are,
14 with respect to him, totally irrelevant to us. It's not a matter for him
15 to answer.
16 So can you confine yourself not to questions about law or anything
17 of the sort, and politics, but as to what happened.
18 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Mr. May, this won't be a great
19 obstacle for me. When my turn comes, there will be some very prominent
20 experts of international renown to explain to you what all this is about
21 and how that crime was committed from the standpoint of international law.
22 So I don't necessarily need this explanation. I just wanted to hear
23 Mr. Okun's opinion. If you're prohibiting that, I don't mind.
24 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
25 Q. But is it in dispute, Mr. Okun, that a representative of the
Page 17099
1 Presidency of the SFRY, rather, the vice-president of that Presidency who
2 headed the Presidency of the SFRY at the time, was not allowed to speak
3 and that that is why they walked out, as a sign of protest? Is that true
4 or not? Just say yes or no. We won't dwell on this. I do not wish to
5 argue with you because there are records about all this. Just say yes or
6 no, please. Is it true that he was not allowed to speak and then they --
7 that they walked out in protest; is that right?
8 A. After Branko Kostic stated that the terms of the AGS, the general
9 settlement that we've discussed already, after he stated that those terms
10 were not acceptable, Lord Carrington heard him say that, he then went on,
11 and Lord Carrington asked him to stop. This is all in the diary. And
12 then he threatened to walk out. That's the line at the top of page 145.
13 And then the three members of the Presidency from Serbia, that is to say
14 Mr. Jovic, Mr. Bajramovic, and the other Mr. Kostic - there were two
15 Kostics, Your Honour - those three gentlemen walked out of the conference.
16 That was the sequence of events, as recorded in my diary.
17 Q. Those four representatives. What the European Community called
18 the Rump Presidency, they walked out of the hall after the vice-president
19 of the Presidency was deprived of the right to speak by Lord Carrington;
20 is that right?
21 A. You're correct, Mr. President, Branko Kostic did walk out; it was
22 four who walked out, not three.
23 Q. Very well, then. So the incident occurred because he was not
24 given the right to speak and not because they wanted to undermine the
25 peace conference. We're just speaking about facts, only about facts. I
Page 17100
1 hope that it is not in dispute that this proposal that was reviewed, that
2 the most important point was the first chapter, first paragraph of the
3 first article, which envisaged the disappearance of Yugoslavia as a state
4 and as a subject of international law on the basis of a consensus among
5 the leaders of the Yugoslav republics, specifically those that the
6 European Community had invited to The Hague. Is that what that document
7 stipulated?
8 A. That was the partial area of the document. I don't have it in
9 front of me, but I assume you're reading from it and that it's correct.
10 This is the AGS, Your Honour, that Mr. Milosevic is referring to.
11 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, I'd ask that Prosecution Exhibit --
12 THE INTERPRETER: Microphone, please.
13 JUDGE MAY: Just a moment. Yes, Mr. Groome.
14 MR. GROOME: I'd ask that the Prosecution Exhibit 396, tab 5, be
15 placed in front of Mr. Okun so he can refer to this particular chapter.
16 JUDGE MAY: Yes. Just a moment. Let the witness have the
17 document.
18 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] There's no dispute whatsoever over
19 that document of Carrington's.
20 JUDGE MAY: There may not be a dispute, but the witness should
21 have the document in front of him if he's being asked about it.
22 Ambassador, would you remind us what "AGS" is standing for.
23 THE WITNESS: It stands for Arrangements for General Settlement.
24 It's document number 124.
25 JUDGE MAY: Yes. We have it.
Page 17101
1 Yes, Mr. Milosevic. The witness has the document.
2 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
3 Q. Does it appear to you from the standpoint of your profession and
4 on the basis of your considerable international experience that the
5 disappearance of a country by auto destruction is surely an innovation?
6 JUDGE MAY: No. That's precisely the area which we've ruled
7 you're not to ask him about. You can address us in due course about it,
8 but it's not for the witness to comment. He's here as a witness as to
9 facts, not to give his opinions about things.
10 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
11 Q. Mr. Okun, as a person specialising in international law, are you
12 familiar with a single case of a state destroying itself?
13 JUDGE MAY: No. Mr. Milosevic, time is short, so repeating these
14 questions which are disallowed is simply taking up your time.
15 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Very well. As you will not allow
16 him to express his opinion, I will ask him, and I assume that is
17 legitimate, for me to ask him what actually happened at the conference.
18 JUDGE MAY: Yes. That's precisely what you should ask him.
19 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] As he was present there and as he
20 followed it very carefully, and as Mr. Okun knows exactly what took place
21 at the conference. So I assume I'm allowed to ask him that.
22 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
23 Q. Do you remember, Mr. Okun, precisely what it says in Article 1,
24 that is that Yugoslavia ceases to exist, that I spoke then. I was not
25 deprived of the floor, and I did not walk out. I will quote myself
Page 17102
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Page 17103
1 actually what I said, and you tell me if you remember that, please. Just
2 please tell me whether you remember that and was it as I am saying it was.
3 I said that the proposal could not be accepted because it suspended the
4 valid constitutional order and abolishes Yugoslavia as a state which had
5 been in existence continuously for 70 years.
6 Is that right, Mr. Okun?
7 A. You may have said that, Mr. President. I do not recall your
8 saying it at that time, nor do my diary notes show it. The diary, on page
9 145, reads -- The walkout was at 3.56 p.m. I noted the time in the
10 diary. And the next line reads: "Carrington announces that the
11 Conference on Yugoslavia is adjourning," and that was at 4.00 p.m. So
12 from the time of the walkout until the time of the adjournment was four
13 minutes.
14 I'm just repeating to you, Mr. President, what's in the diary and
15 what it shows. So whether you spoke or not, I didn't record it. I'm not
16 disputing what you're saying, but I have no recollection of your speaking.
17 Q. And do you recollect that I said at the time that a decision on
18 the abolition of a state cannot be taken by any international forum, that
19 a decision can only be taken by that subject or entity that had originally
20 created the state and that the mandate to accept such an arrangement was
21 not given to any of the participants in the conference, nor can such a
22 mandate be given to the conference as such. Do you remember that?
23 A. Yes, Mr. President. It is so recorded in the diary on pages 139
24 and 140. Those were your earlier remarks, and they are recorded in the
25 diary.
Page 17104
1 Q. That's fine. So I'm not asking you what I said when the
2 conference adjourned, I'm asking what I said at the conference, and you've
3 noted it, I see. So I said not a single participant at this conference
4 has the mandate to accept this, nor can such a conference have such a
5 mandate, the valid constitutional order of the country, which is being
6 ignored by this arrangement. The only exception is being made to the
7 existing federal units and their borders, their administrative borders,
8 and those federal units were formed at the time of and immediately after
9 the Second World War, and their borders were never determined by any legal
10 act which was democratically verified.
11 I went on to say: By these arrangements, the unilateral act of
12 secession is being legalised and a unilateral secession of republics was
13 the cause of armed conflicts. Avoiding the real causes of the crisis
14 could move us further away from a lasting and stable peace in Yugoslavia,
15 an aim which we all want to achieve. It is clear to all that the crux of
16 the conflict in Yugoslavia is the position of the Serbian people in
17 Croatia which is threatened by extermination for a second time in a
18 century, and there can be no settlement to the Yugoslav crisis without
19 providing protection and national survival of the Serbian people. Those
20 were my words.
21 Is that right, Mr. Okun?
22 A. So I've heard you say.
23 Q. How, then, 12 years later, are you telling us that it became clear
24 to us that Serbia wanted war. So what I was saying was in favour of peace
25 because what happened caused war, because what happened --
Page 17105
1 JUDGE MAY: Let him answer. You've asked a question. He must be
2 able to answer it.
3 THE WITNESS: I said that, Your Honour, because of the six
4 Yugoslav republics present at that meeting on October 18, five of the six
5 republics accepted the AGS as drawn. The only republic that did not
6 accept it was Serbia, the representatives of Serbia, to use the
7 phraseology of Mr. Milosevic, and therefore, you had five of the six
8 republics accepting the comprehensive settlement of the problem proposed
9 by Lord Carrington and the conference and one rejecting it. I think that
10 speaks for itself.
11 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
12 Q. Mr. Okun, the conference continued. It lasted for some time after
13 that. It went into October and then the next year also. Then there was
14 the London conference, the Geneva conference, and so on. Therefore, this
15 was not the end of it. To this day, I consider that my arguments were
16 right and failure to take them into consideration had led to war, because
17 what we had was a forcible act of secession whereby genocide was committed
18 against a whole people. You don't agree with that, do you?
19 JUDGE MAY: No. That's not for the witness to answer. All he can
20 deal with is what happened at the time. You can ask him about anything he
21 says about the conference, of course, but his opinions, and particularly
22 his opinions about what happened afterwards, are not relevant.
23 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
24 Q. And do you remember that in October the conference met for a
25 second time?
Page 17106
1 A. I don't have that in my records, but I imagine it could be the
2 case.
3 Q. At this plenary session at the level of the presidents of the
4 republics was scheduled for the 25th of October, according to the notes
5 that I have here. And even after that, if you remember, this fresh
6 meeting, Tudjman, who had spoken to me, and his statement can be found in
7 the press of the time, in which he said that Serbia had no territorial
8 claims. The affair around Dubrovnik started at that time, and Tudjman
9 said that I had condemned any kind of violence related to Dubrovnik.
10 Do you recollect that? This was precisely at the following
11 meeting of the conference that was held at the end of October.
12 A. I was not present at that meeting, Mr. Milosevic. Mr. Vance and I
13 returned to the United States, I believe it was either on the 18th or the
14 19th of October, after the first mission. It was on the 18th, immediately
15 after the walkout - I see that on page 145 - and we were in New York at
16 the United Nations and doing our work in New York, and we returned -- if I
17 could just give you the timing. We returned on Monday, November 4. So
18 between October 18 and November 4, we were in the United States.
19 Q. And you didn't follow developments, the course of the conference?
20 You had no insight into that? You attended that one meeting, and after
21 that, you didn't keep track of it. Very well.
22 Is it also true you that Borisav Jovic, at a meeting you had with
23 him on the 17th of October had drawn attention specifically to the
24 secession of the republics?
25 A. If I might revert to your previous comment, we of course did
Page 17107
1 follow the conference, and Mr. Jovic, on the 17th, if I might consult my
2 notes -- yes. I found that on page 128 of Vance mission diary number 1.
3 It records Mr. Jovic stating, and I quote from the diary: "I predicted
4 war if secessionists were allowed to carry out their plans. I was
5 correct, but the West would not listen. Now we have violence caused by
6 the secessionists," et cetera. And I noted parenthetically to my comment
7 on his demeanour: "Aggressive tone from the start."
8 Yes. Mr. Jovic did state that the secessionists had caused the
9 war. That was his opinion, and I duly noted it in my diary.
10 Q. And did he tell you how many people had left Croatia, that the
11 Croatian military operations were the causes of many unfortunate events?
12 Is that right?
13 A. That was his opinion.
14 Q. And did Jovic personally draw attention to the fact that the
15 Croatian government was not ready to deblock the garrisons and that it was
16 continuing to attack the army and that, on the other hand, there were
17 orders in the army not to return fire, not to respond to those attacks
18 except in necessary self-defence?
19 A. That was his view.
20 Q. Did Jovic tell you at the time that the only important thing was
21 to try to bring influence to bear on the Germans to tell Croatia to stop
22 what it was doing?
23 A. He said that.
24 Q. Now let's go back to the conference. You advocated that the Serbs
25 in Croatia must be given special status. Wasn't that right? Both you and
Page 17108
1 Cyrus Vance.
2 A. That is correct.
3 Q. And that international institutions should be the guarantors of
4 that status.
5 A. Through the UN peacekeeping operation, that was our view.
6 Q. Do you know that at that meeting that I had with Tudjman, that he
7 too was very close to accepting autonomy for the Serbian regions in
8 Croatia? He wanted to accept it.
9 A. If you -- I wasn't present at that meeting, but if you say so.
10 Q. And do you know when he turned around and decided not to agree to
11 anything? Do you know that the -- there were no reasons for continuing
12 talks with them after the visit to Germany when the Germans told him that
13 they would recognise him within his administrative borders and that he
14 should forget about the Serbs?
15 A. I'm listening to you. I hear you say that. I have no knowledge
16 of it.
17 Q. So you know nothing about that. There will be occasions on some
18 other occasion for this to be demonstrated here.
19 Very well, then. When Jovic said to you that attempts should be
20 made to influence Germany to change its position towards the break-up of
21 Yugoslavia, you remember that, don't you?
22 A. That was Jovic's position, and it was the general Serb position.
23 Q. We also had a meeting on the 18th of November. Did I tell you and
24 Cyrus Vance on that occasion very explicitly that it was indispensable to
25 continue the negotiations?
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Page 17110
1 JUDGE MAY: Ambassador, if you find the entry in your diary, if
2 you can, refer to it, of course.
3 THE WITNESS: Thank you, Your Honour.
4 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
5 Q. You remember that meeting, don't you?
6 A. Yes. I'm trying to find --
7 Q. Mr. Jovanovic was with me.
8 A. I'm consulting my notes, Mr. Milosevic.
9 Q. [In English] "Negotiating WO bloodshed."
10 A. What page would that be on?
11 JUDGE MAY: Can somebody assist the witness.
12 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
13 Q. 18th of November, 1991, page 17 of this typed text in English.
14 It's easier for me to use than the photocopies of your original
15 handwriting. I assume it was correctly typed out.
16 A. I can assume that you are better off with the text, but it does
17 give us different page numbers, so if I might find that quote.
18 JUDGE MAY: Yes. Can the Prosecution assist as to what page that
19 would be.
20 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, Ms. Wee will go up and get the typed
21 copy so the Ambassador will have both. It may take a minute to get that.
22 My apologies.
23 THE WITNESS: Yes, I found it, Your Honour, the statement of
24 Mr. Milosevic. It followed the initial discussion of the peacekeeping
25 plan by Mr. Vance. He asked for President Milosevic's views, and this has
Page 17111
1 already been stated, President Milosevic stated: "This is completely
2 suitable for what we have in Yugoslavia," that is to say, the peacekeeping
3 operation. Then the next statement was then: "Back to negotiating
4 without bloodshed."
5 Yes, that is correct.
6 JUDGE KWON: So you are referring to page 41.
7 THE WITNESS: Precisely, page 41. The top of page 41. And then
8 the president went on, we all have the notes in front of us, by stating:
9 "The situation is complicated. There are different kind of troops,
10 commands, national guards, et cetera, on the Croatian side," and then,
11 "Croats began by attacking Serbs living in compact areas in Croatia in the
12 form of military Krajinas of the old Austro-Hungarian empire. Before
13 World War I, there were only two independent states," et cetera, et
14 cetera. And I noted in the diary that - in the brackets, you'll see --
15 with due respect, Mr. President, I've noted in the diary: "Milosevic's
16 lecture." We had heard it so often -- we had heard it so often from you
17 that we referred to this as your lecture.
18 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
19 Q. I assume that you don't mind, since you lecture as well. You give
20 lectures.
21 At the beginning, Mr. Okun, you said that you ended your mission
22 in January 1992, that the mission had succeeded in halting the war, that
23 the blue helmets arrived in the areas under protection that were then
24 known as the UN Protected Areas, and you assessed that the mission had
25 ended successfully and returned to the States after January 1992. Isn't
Page 17112
1 that right?
2 Then you came back in October 1992 when the problems started that
3 Cyrus Vance was dealing with once again, this time in Bosnia-Herzegovina;
4 is that right?
5 A. No, that's not correct, Mr. President. We departed in January
6 after the conclusion of the cessation of hostilities in Croatia, and that
7 I refer to as a successful conclusion. We were -- we did not, however,
8 wait until the following October to return. We were back in the former
9 Yugoslavia in March, specifically March 3. So we were in there earlier.
10 Q. All right. I understood you to have said so. But never mind,
11 it's not an essential point.
12 But what we discussed, this mission, you came to see me, or
13 rather, Cyrus Vance did together with you, to ask for my assistance and
14 support to the peace plan and the establishment of a peace mission which
15 would not pre-empt a political solution but would prevent the war, stop
16 the war. Isn't that right, Mr. Okun?
17 A. That was the purpose of the peacekeeping operation, yes, to
18 provide a situation of calm with protection for the Croatian people and
19 the Serb people in Croatia in order to allow the political negotiations
20 being conducted by Lord Carrington to continue.
21 Q. Now, when we link all this up, you came to see me for me to help,
22 first and foremost, by wielding political influence, and the role that
23 Serbia had, as big as it was, first of all, first and foremost, to prevail
24 upon the leaders in the Krajinas, in the east with Hadzic and in the Knin
25 Krajina with Babic and his associates. Wasn't that how it was?
Page 17113
1 A. Yes.
2 Q. So you asked me to talk to them; right?
3 A. In connection with the peacekeeping operation, yes.
4 Q. Well, I supported the peacekeeping operation just to stop a war,
5 to prevent a war, and to opt for a peaceful solution. Isn't that so,
6 Mr. Okun?
7 A. Yes. And others did it as well, under your direction and, of
8 course, on the Croatian side.
9 Q. Well, I hope that you used the expression "under your direction"
10 incorrectly, because I told you at the time as well that my political
11 influence could only be political, public in view of the post I held, and
12 only a political one as far as it was supported by the public, by public
13 opinion, and that I would invest my all to strive for peace. And that is
14 what I did; isn't that right?
15 A. That is what you told us.
16 Q. All right. Then tell me this: Apart from the facts that aren't
17 challenged, that is to say the 18th of November, the meeting and the need
18 to go back to the negotiating table, this portion you read out from your
19 diary a moment ago, did I indicate to you that the Croatian extremists
20 were starting to attack the Serbs throughout the territory of Croatia?
21 A. That was your persistent contention.
22 Q. And did you know how many refugees there were from Croatia in
23 Serbia already at that time? Did you make a point of finding out about
24 that?
25 A. We heard numbers from various sources, and we took account of
Page 17114
1 that.
2 Q. Did I reiterate on the occasion that the army had the exclusive
3 role of separating the parties in conflict at that meeting as well? Did I
4 repeat that to you?
5 A. So you did. I must note, Mr. President, that we saw with our own
6 eyes on repeated occasions that was not in fact the case. And I have
7 testified to that fact.
8 Q. Well, what happened we shall be able to establish looking at it
9 from all sides, but tell me this, please: Did I tell you on that occasion
10 that we in Serbia would not allow any kind of paramilitary formations?
11 A. Yes. I've already reported on that.
12 Q. In your notes, you frequently make mention of the fact that I
13 referred to Serbian paramilitary formations being under the control of
14 Hadzic, or words to that effect. Now, as I never used that expression
15 myself, I hope that that was a misunderstanding, because under Hadzic's or
16 Babic's control, all that could have been under their control was the
17 Serbian Territorial Defence, which were not paramilitary formations but
18 Territorial Defence of Krajina. The Territorial Defence of the Serbian
19 Autonomous Province of Eastern Slavonia, Baranja, and Western Srem, and
20 the Territorial Defence of Krajina in the Knin region.
21 So we were talking about the Territorial Defence and not
22 paramilitaries. Isn't that right, Mr. Okun?
23 A. I would not agree with that. We witnessed, as I've previously
24 testified, Serbian irregulars in Dalj at the corps commander of the JNA's
25 headquarters. We saw numerous highly irregular troops. I wouldn't want
Page 17115
1 to characterise them beyond that because any characterisation would be too
2 negative for the Court. But we saw people like that in Vukovar after the
3 fall of the city. So I'm reporting what I saw.
4 JUDGE MAY: But the question is when the accused was referring to
5 paramilitaries, as you have noted, was he in fact simply referring to the
6 Territorial Defence or was he referring to something else? Could you
7 perhaps clarify that, Ambassador, from your note.
8 THE WITNESS: Yes. Yes, Your Honour. At the top of page 43,
9 within quotes, I quoted President Milosevic, then President Milosevic, as
10 stated: "We in Serbia did not allow any irregular or paramilitary
11 troops." "In Eastern Krajina, some local Serbs helped the army." He did
12 not say they were Territorial Defence units. He may have meant that, but
13 we could see what kind of troops they were when we visited the
14 battlefront.
15 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
16 Q. You quoted very precisely. I did say we in Serbia do not allow
17 any paramilitaries or irregular or paramilitary troops but in that chaos
18 of conflict and clash that they could appear. However, I say now in
19 connection with the portion you talk -- you mention who is in control of
20 the paramilitaries, and when I talk about Hadzic, I say he was at the head
21 of the Territorial Defence. He was not at the head of any irregulars,
22 irregular Krajina troops, and I hope that is quite clear. Those forces
23 were the regular forces of the Territorial Defence of the SAO Krajina.
24 JUDGE MAY: Now, this is very important that we get this correct.
25 The issue which the accused is raising, Ambassador, is whether he
Page 17116
1 referred to Hadzic as being in control of paramilitaries.
2 THE WITNESS: Your Honour, it was my view then, and it remains my
3 view now, that he was referring to the paramilitaries. Later on in the
4 same dialogue, then President Milosevic said "Babic and Hadzic both
5 political and military leaders," and we understood that to mean that each
6 of these two gentlemen controlled their political situation and controlled
7 all of the armed forces, all of the armed men within their sphere of
8 influence. Whether they were territorials or irregulars, they were under
9 the control of Babic and Hadzic, and that was, I believe, widely
10 understood at the time throughout Croatia and throughout Serbia.
11 JUDGE KWON: Mr. Ambassador -- just a minute, Mr. Milosevic.
12 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
13 Q. Well, that's the whole point.
14 JUDGE KWON: Just a minute, Mr. Milosevic. Excuse me.
15 Were you aware of the existence of the Territorial Defence at that
16 time or the concept of the Territorial Defence or TO?
17 THE WITNESS: Yes.
18 JUDGE KWON: Were you aware that volunteers from Serbia or the
19 local area were subsumed -- some part of them was subsumed to the
20 organisation of the Territorial Defence?
21 THE WITNESS: We never checked that out ourselves directly. We
22 didn't interview people, for example, Your Honour, but we were aware that
23 that was said by various people.
24 JUDGE KWON: So is it possible for you to refer to those -- the
25 volunteers as paramilitaries who were in either the TO or the JNA?
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Page 17118
1 THE WITNESS: Well, the JNA I would certainly not refer to as
2 paramilitaries. The TO is a more complicated situation. It depended, I
3 think in every case, where they were active, what the command structure
4 was.
5 You see, Your Honour, as we discussed yesterday in the brief
6 interchange concerning the transition from the JNA to the VJ and then from
7 the VJ to the Bosnian Serb army, namely the VRS, during this entire
8 period, names changed and concepts changed, and very often the parties,
9 and it was usually the Yugoslav party in this case, made changes in
10 nomenclature that often concealed rather than elucidated the reality. So
11 it is a murky picture, and we're trying to separate the strands of
12 spaghetti from time to time here.
13 But I repeat, what we saw with our own eyes on the battlefields in
14 Croatia were not territorial troops, were not TO troops separate from the
15 JNA, in separate units, wearing separate kind of uniforms. The only
16 people who really wore different uniforms were, naturally, on the Serbian
17 side, the Serbian police, who wore police uniforms. The irregulars wore a
18 variety of civilian clothing, actually, often with boots, sometimes with
19 jackets thrown over. We were there in the winter, you'll recall, so they
20 were wearing sweaters and coats. This is the winter of 1991. But they
21 certainly did not indicate any type of military organisation. For
22 example, none of them, to my recollection, wore badges or insignia that
23 would indicate a rank. Now, if you're in an organised military structure,
24 everybody has a rank and wears it and displays it. The Geneva Conventions
25 require it and note it in the Conventions that one of the conditions of
Page 17119
1 being in an organised military unit is a badge of rank, that sort of
2 thing. So the paramilitaries didn't wear that kind of stuff, and
3 therefore, I think we were correct in using the terminology "paramilitary"
4 or "irregular."
5 JUDGE KWON: Thank you. You may proceed.
6 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Than you, Mr. Kwon. That's what I
7 wanted to clear up.
8 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
9 Q. Because you noted -- you made a note of me having said that Babic
10 and Hadzic, both politically -- were both political and military leaders
11 in Krajina, one in the east and the other in the west; is that right?
12 A. Correct.
13 Q. Now, do you know that they were nominated and appointed by their
14 governments, elected by their assemblies and appointed commanders of the
15 Territorial Defence in the Serb Autonomous Regions? Do you know that?
16 Are you aware of that?
17 A. I'm aware of that.
18 Q. So I told you something that was both de facto and de jure
19 correct; right?
20 A. It was de facto correct. Whether it was de jure correct is
21 another matter.
22 Q. All right. But without doubt, they had been nominated and
23 appointed by their Assemblies and by their governments. That's not in
24 dispute. And I assume you are challenging the legality of their
25 Assemblies and governments, but as such, they were appointed by their
Page 17120
1 Assemblies and by their governments.
2 So is it then clear that if they were nominated and appointed by
3 their Assemblies and governments, which is something you are familiar
4 with, that the troops then that were subordinated to them were no
5 paramilitary troops but first of all they were the Territorial Defence and
6 then later on --
7 JUDGE MAY: I'm going to stop this. This sounds like one of your
8 complicated arguments you're trying to run to us.
9 Ambassador, you made the note; what did you understand the
10 situation to be, whatever the accused is arguing now?
11 THE WITNESS: We understood that Babic and Hadzic were in
12 political and military command of their regions and that they were
13 responsible ultimately, if not directly, for the military activities that
14 took place on their side. We could see that the military activities were
15 being carried out by paramilitary and irregular forces.
16 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
17 Q. And do you happen to remember, Mr. Okun, that I said to you, I
18 believe -- you mentioned Hadzic, and I said that I believed that 95 per
19 cent of those troops were under control and that they would certainly
20 adhere to the agreement. I assume there could have been 5 per cent, say,
21 of some kind of paramilitaries, paramilitary troops, in all that chaos.
22 But as for the disciplined army that was there, the Territorial Defence
23 troops of Krajina, they adhered to the agreement, and that is not in
24 dispute. Is it being challenged? Are you challenging it or not?
25 A. Not at all. I so indicated earlier.
Page 17121
1 Q. Just a slight digression from your diaries now. I'm looking at
2 this official statement of yours, the one you gave to this institution
3 here, and I've already asked you something about one of the points there
4 in it, where they wished to emphasise that I was the sole representative
5 of the Serbian side that you negotiated with and then you explained to
6 them how it was. So it's in that same paper, that same document.
7 And you go on to say the following: When Slobodan Milosevic was
8 informed that there was news that the Serb paramilitaries - and you were
9 informing of that - were committing crimes and ethnic cleansing in
10 north-western Bosnia-Herzegovina, he tried -- he appeared to be
11 astonished, or he made it look as if he was surprised.
12 Isn't that right? "Feigned surprise." Is that what you said?
13 And when was that? In November 1991, was it?
14 A. What meeting are you referring to?
15 Q. I'm referring to point C on page 1 of your statement. The
16 official statement that you made.
17 JUDGE MAY: Yes, Mr. Groome.
18 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, I believe it's a meeting --
19 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
20 Q. But to save time, we'll get to that and we'll get to your diary.
21 Let's move on. I am afraid this is -- I'm losing a lot of time over this.
22 We'll back to this question.
23 JUDGE MAY: You're losing time but we must have these documents.
24 The witness can have a copy of his statement, if that's of assistance.
25 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, there is no statement. Mr. Milosevic
Page 17122
1 was referring to the witness summary. I only have one with my notes.
2 We're getting a clean copy now, but I will direct that the passage Mr.
3 Milosevic is referring to is on book 3, page 98. It's a meeting of the
4 21st of November, 1991.
5 THE WITNESS: Yes, I've found it, Your Honour. Thank you. I have
6 page 98. It reads, briefly, not to take time: It refers to Secretary
7 Vance saying that he's heard disturbing reports of activities by Serb
8 irregulars in Bosnia, and I noted to myself parenthetically, "Then
9 President Milosevic feigned surprise." You pretended to be surprised,
10 yes. In my judgement, you were aware of what was going on and you were
11 pretending not to.
12 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
13 Q. Mr. Okun, do you know that I'm surprised now too? Not only then
14 in 1991, but I'm quite surprised now as well. What conflicts were there
15 in Bosnia in 1991? In 1991, in November, in Bosnia-Herzegovina it was
16 completely peaceful, calm and peaceful. There were no paramilitary
17 troops. Nothing was going on in 1991 November in Bosnia. And you
18 yourself speak about the fact that the conflicts began after the breakdown
19 of the Cutileiro plan, and we'll come to establish that. So that was in
20 March 1992. So what kind of conflicts in Bosnia in November? What kind
21 of killings and crimes in November in Bosnia in 1991 at all? And
22 everybody would be surprised today to hear this, that at that time in 1991
23 there was any kind of violence in Bosnia at all. Quite the contrary. The
24 Presidency of Bosnia-Herzegovina was still operational and functioning.
25 It was composed of Muslims, Serbs, and Croats. The organs and
Page 17123
1 institutions of the republic were functioning. They believed that an
2 agreement would be reached about an equitable solution for the three
3 national communities, ethnic communities, and Cutileiro's plan came later
4 on.
5 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, there was a question put to the witness,
6 "What conflicts were there in Bosnia in 1991?" I'd ask that he be
7 allowed to answer the question that was put to him.
8 JUDGE MAY: Yes.
9 THE WITNESS: If I may answer, we had already heard reports of
10 fighting in November in Bosnia-Herzegovina. I refer you to Vance mission
11 diary number 2 where the Prime Minister of Yugoslavia, Ante Markovic,
12 discussed that with us. So it was known that there were -- there was
13 fighting in Bosnia.
14 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
15 Q. What was there going on in Bosnia? Where do you have any facts or
16 pieces of information about any kind of clashes or conflicts in Bosnia in
17 1991? Who was killed in 1991?
18 A. Prime Minister Markovic told us there was.
19 Q. Who?
20 A. Prime Minister Ante Markovic.
21 Q. Ante Markovic told you that.
22 A. Yes.
23 Q. I stand surprised even now that anybody could claim, and that
24 opposing side over there at least has information on Bosnia because it is
25 trying -- has been trying Serbs from Bosnia here for ten years already, so
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Page 17125
1 I don't know that anybody was accused of having done anything in 1991.
2 JUDGE MAY: The witness can only answer what he was told, and
3 that's his answer.
4 THE ACCUSED: Okay.
5 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
6 Q. Okay. Fine. Tell me, please, at that meeting, the one I said
7 that -- where I said that Serbia would not allow and did not allow any
8 irregular forces - which is true, they never existed in Serbia - did I
9 indicate to you that at that time over 20 Serb villages in Eastern
10 Slavonia had been burnt? Do you remember that?
11 A. You said that.
12 Q. And on that occasion, did you hear my assessment and evaluation?
13 And you asked me to assist in this regard, that the Serb side - I'm
14 thinking of the Serb side in Croatia - and the army would accept the
15 International Monitoring Mission or, rather, the UN forces; isn't that so?
16 A. Yes, that is correct.
17 Q. So is that then an expression of my conviction that the Serbs
18 exclusively desired peace and that they wished in a peaceful way to settle
19 the problems they had and, of course, the violence that they were exposed
20 to?
21 A. We understood your agreement to Secretary Vance's initial
22 proposals for a peacekeeping operation, and we welcomed that, of course.
23 And we knew that with your agreement, the JNA would follow, as they did,
24 that the local Serb leaders would follow, as they did, and of course we
25 welcomed that. The diary is replete with references to that. And I may
Page 17126
1 say, if I could finish, that we hoped that the imposition of the UN
2 peacekeeping force would lead to a peaceful settlement. The peacekeeping
3 operation was not a peace plan, it was simply an arrangement on the ground
4 to allow the peace settlement to be achieved. Unfortunately, it was not
5 achieved.
6 Q. Yes. Unfortunately. Precisely for the reasons that I'm
7 indicating. It was precisely for those reasons.
8 And on the 18th at that time, did you have talks with Kadijevic?
9 Did he indicate the problem about the attack on the garrisons and the
10 deblocking of the barracks and the blockade again? Did he indicate that
11 to you once again, although he had spoken to you about that previously as
12 well? Wasn't that how it was on that particular day?
13 A. Yes, indeed. The question of the blockaded JNA troops and their
14 families, as I've indicated, was very high if not uppermost in General
15 Kadijevic's mind.
16 Q. On the 20th of November, you attended a meeting with General
17 Raseta. Is it true and correct that on the occasion it was very precisely
18 in -- the problem of the JNA and the officers was precisely indicated, who
19 had been under siege and in an encirclement for two months, they couldn't
20 see their families, and they were blocked by the Croatian paramilitary
21 troops. Is that how it was or not?
22 A. Well, you've made three points in that locution, Mr. Milosevic.
23 Let me take them, if I might, one by one.
24 It is true that on October 20 we spent quite a bit of time in the
25 blockaded Marshall Tito Kaserne in Zagreb with General Raseta and his
Page 17127
1 troops. The report of that meeting, and it's a full report, because we
2 regarded it as so important for us to meet those troops, is in Vance diary
3 number 3 beginning on page 82 and going through page 85. So yes, we spent
4 a lot of time with the troops, listening to them and their concerns, and
5 they did have concerns.
6 Your second point, namely that they were blocked by Croatian
7 paramilitaries, I have no knowledge of that. They did not say that. We
8 were taken into the barracks --
9 Q. Just to ask you then, Mr. Okun, yourself: These Serb forces, you
10 consider them to be paramilitaries. Do you consider the Croatian ones to
11 be legal at that time or paramilitary forces?
12 JUDGE MAY: Can you answer that, Ambassador? It sounds like a
13 question which we may ultimately have to decide. Did you have a view at
14 the time about it or not?
15 THE WITNESS: Croatia had an army. It was constituted. It had
16 ranks. The names of the officers were known. General Anton Tus was the
17 Commander-in-Chief. I met with him. Many others did as well, and his
18 officers. I don't think anybody would consider them paramilitaries, no.
19 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
20 Q. Your answer suffices. You consider that in Croatia they did not
21 have any paramilitary forces. That means that the forces that were active
22 in 1990 --
23 JUDGE MAY: That's not what he said. Just pay attention, if you
24 would, to the answers. The witness was describing what happened when he
25 went into the barracks. He said he didn't consider the people there
Page 17128
1 paramilitaries.
2 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
3 Q. Do you know anything about Croatian paramilitary formations,
4 Mr. Okun?
5 A. Yes, I do. I was told that Paraga, a certain man named Paraga,
6 whom I never met, had under his direction a small band of troops that
7 opposed the Croatian government and also fought and I'm sure committed
8 acts. Paraga was the head of the so-called Party of Rights. His troops
9 were referred to -- his party and his group was referred to as the HOS. It
10 was widely reported, but I never witnessed it myself, that they actually
11 wore the Ustasha marking from the Second World War. So that there were
12 reports, widespread reports, of the activities of this group.
13 It was also reported that Paraga opposed President Tudjman and the
14 government of Croatia.
15 JUDGE MAY: It's time now to adjourn. In fact, it's slightly
16 after the time. Before we do, let me make one announcement about the
17 arrangements in early April. We shall be changing the sitting days as
18 follows: We shall take the rest break rather earlier. We shall not sit
19 on the 4th and the 7th of April, but we will sit on the 11th and 14th. In
20 fact, that will make a more rational break in our sitting pattern.
21 We will adjourn now. Twenty minutes. Will you be back then,
22 please, Ambassador.
23 --- Recess taken at 10.35 a.m.
24 --- On resuming at 11.00 a.m.
25 JUDGE MAY: Mr. Milosevic, you have two hours more with this
Page 17129
1 witness, whose evidence we must finish today because he's had to hang
2 around in The Hague. So can you tailor your examination to that, please.
3 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] At least then let me use the time
4 for the rest of the day, if I may. This is very limited time for me for
5 this witness.
6 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
7 Q. So, Mr. Okun, you have absolutely no knowledge except Paraga, that
8 you mentioned, about the arming of Croatian paramilitary units through the
9 ruling HDZ party or about violence committed against Serb civilians, the
10 Serb population all over Croatia, precisely by those paramilitary forces
11 and the regular Croatian police. So you have no knowledge about these
12 things. Did I understand you correctly?
13 A. Let me take those points in turn. On the question of
14 paramilitaries, I did have knowledge. I was made aware of Paraga and his
15 troops, although, as I mentioned, I never saw them.
16 On your second point, whether the government of Croatia and the
17 HDZ armed them, I have no knowledge.
18 And on your third point that violence was committed against the
19 Serb people in Croatia, I was previously asked that question, and I said
20 that yes, I did have knowledge of that through statements from you and
21 from other Serb leaders. And as you'll recall, I added that the violence
22 committed against the Croatian people was much larger than that committed
23 against the Serb people in Croatia.
24 Q. Did you then know how many refugees there were in Serbia coming
25 from Croatia?
Page 17130
1 A. The exact number, no, I never knew. It was never made available.
2 Q. Did you know how many Serbs were killed all over Croatia?
3 A. I knew what you and others told us, but I don't believe you ever
4 gave figures except on rare occasions, and it was a statement, of course,
5 we took into account.
6 Q. Very well. Talking about this meeting with Raseta, he told you,
7 within the context of efforts and endeavours to deblock the barracks --
8 and you have this in your diary, but please, if you need to quote
9 anything, limit yourself to my questions because, as you see, my time is
10 extremely limited. Is it clear that he linked the blockade to what he
11 said, that is that he didn't want anything to be repeated of what had
12 happened in Vukovar? Was this a clear inference to the fact that what
13 happened in Vukovar happened because the barracks were blocked and because
14 there was large scale violence precisely by those Croatian paramilitary
15 forces that we're talking about?
16 A. In general, that was his contention. Of course, we were able to
17 see for ourselves what happened in Vukovar. I don't want to repeat it,
18 Mr. Milosevic - I agree with you, we shouldn't be repetitive, we need to
19 move on - but I did report rather fully about the complete destruction of
20 Vukovar.
21 Q. Apart from Paraga, had you heard of Mercep and his criminals who
22 had massacred Serbs in the area of Vukovar? Even representatives of the
23 Croatian government complained about them. That is Marin Vidic, a
24 representative of the government, wrote a letter to the Croatian president
25 about that. Do you know that? And he was the legal head of the forces
Page 17131
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Page 17132
1 constituted by the Croatian government. That was this Mercep who had
2 committed crimes. Had you heard anything about him?
3 A. We heard various reports of that nature.
4 Q. Very well. You had a meeting with Kadijevic in Belgrade on the
5 21st of November. At the time, you mentioned Vukovar. Did Kadijevic tell
6 you then what had happened in Vukovar, to the effect that the barracks had
7 been blocked for two months without food or water and that the people had
8 demanded that the army assist Vukovar? Is what -- is that what you took
9 down in your diary, what you wrote down in your diary?
10 A. That was the general burden of his comment.
11 Q. You spoke about peace. Is it true that you told me that Kadijevic
12 agreed with a peaceful settlement and that I answered that that was a good
13 thing?
14 A. Yes. We were pleased that Kadijevic followed your line -- yes.
15 Yes, we were pleased to hear that General Kadijevic --
16 Q. Is it true that you told me then that he, Kadijevic, had told you
17 that the army would withdraw from Croatia as soon as the garrisons were
18 deblocked? And my response again was, "Excellent."
19 A. As I've already reported, the unblocking of the garrison was of
20 the highest concern to General Kadijevic, and he did assure us that the
21 fighting would cease, that the JNA would cease its military activities
22 once the garrisons were unblocked. That is correct.
23 Q. I'm reading, actually, from your diary. Cyrus Vance says:
24 "Kadijevic agreed." Cyrus Vance says: "Kadijevic said the JNA would
25 withdraw from all of Croatia when garrisons unblocked." And then again I
Page 17133
1 say: "Excellent." And then you say that I feign surprise in connection
2 with certain Serb irregular forces in Bosnia. And this was a meeting --
3 now I can't find the exact date of that meeting. I suppose it's precisely
4 the one held in November. Let me see the date of the meeting. I can't
5 see the date, but we can move on.
6 MR. GROOME: It's the 21st of November.
7 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
8 Q. 21st of November, 1991. So if what we've just quoted is correct,
9 you informed me what Kadijevic told you and that he had agreed. Where,
10 then, did you come to the conclusion that I had control over Kadijevic and
11 that I had the army under my control? You are informing me or, rather,
12 Cyrus Vance, as you say here, said that Kadijevic agrees, that he will
13 withdraw, and I say fine, and so on.
14 How, then, did you come to make the conclusion so many years later
15 that I had control over Kadijevic and the army?
16 A. The conclusion was drawn at the time and not so many years later.
17 Let me recall for the Court the conversation of November 18 where
18 Secretary Vance and I introduced the peacekeeping plan for the first time
19 to then President Milosevic, who said, Yes, this is fine for us -- I'm
20 paraphrasing. You will have no problem, words to that effect.
21 We then went to General Kadijevic who said the same thing,
22 although there was no previous indication to General Kadijevic from our
23 side of what we were going to say.
24 So when Mr. Vance, three days later, said, as I've recorded, to
25 President Milosevic, Kadijevic has agreed, he was reporting the agreement
Page 17134
1 of the 18th which followed President Milosevic's earlier agreement. And
2 this was simply in the nature of summing up, because of course we assumed
3 that President Milosevic knew that. Why wouldn't he know that? If we
4 knew it, why wouldn't he know it?
5 Q. Doesn't this show that in the case of Serbia --
6 JUDGE MAY: Let him finish. Let him finish.
7 THE WITNESS: So it was not Mr. Vance informing President
8 Milosevic of General Kadijevic's assent, he was confirming something that
9 we assumed and indeed knew to be the case. It was just by way of
10 introduction.
11 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
12 Q. If we pursue that logic, Mr. Okun, at the first meeting with
13 Kadijevic, he also told you that the army support a peaceful settlement,
14 that it wanted to avoid war. The position of the army was to avoid war.
15 The position of Serbia too was to avoid war, to resolve problems by
16 peaceful means in Yugoslavia. Therefore, how, then, can you link this up
17 to some sort of control that I allegedly had over the army when both at
18 the federal level and at the level of the Republic of Serbia the people
19 were against the war?
20 A. The question of words and deeds arises. We always listened
21 carefully. I noted, and you have quoted, the diaries. I don't just report
22 what we say. I reported as faithfully as I could everything that was said
23 to us of importance. However, one naturally had to check that against
24 facts on the ground. Let me give you an example.
25 The garrison at Vukovar. We had been told that that was the
Page 17135
1 ostensible reason for the JNA siege. In that siege of three months, a
2 city of 50 or 60.000 was reduced to rubble. We then saw the garrison. It
3 was small and hardly touched. And then Mr. Jovic, the former president of
4 the country, reported in his book on the break-up of Yugoslavia that, in
5 fact, he said the garrison had been freed on September 20, 1991. That's
6 what Mr. Jovic wrote in the book. I read it in the book. And if the
7 garrison had been freed on September 1991, then the question arises why
8 the siege and the destruction continued until November 18, for almost two
9 more months, two months.
10 So I answer simply to illustrate the difference between words and
11 deeds.
12 Q. Regarding Jovic's book, that can only be a printing error, because
13 it is impossible for him to be able to assert such a thing according to
14 information that I have. And as the army was present there, then surely
15 the most reliable collocutor for you must have been General Kadijevic and
16 not me or Jovic regarding what was going on over there.
17 A. So I hear you say.
18 Q. You say in this summary, or whatever it's called, official
19 statement, you speak about the meeting when I mentioned that, as you say,
20 I was the only representative of Serb interests, and you had come to my
21 office, and you say that during that meeting, "Milosevic made the
22 following remarks which point to the fact that he had control over the
23 Serbian police in connection with the political and military situation in
24 Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina."
25 My remarks that I made have been taken here as evidence that I
Page 17136
1 have control, and those remarks are the following: A -- since you refer
2 to those remarks on the basis of which you infer the conclusion that I
3 have control, according to what is stated here, though you had asked me
4 for my assistance.
5 JUDGE MAY: Mr. Milosevic, you're questioning the witness. This
6 seems to be going on. Are you referring to these charts which we've had
7 in which statements and events are referred to? Is that what you're
8 referring to?
9 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] No. It has 030404113. That's the
10 page of the translation. And it says "Official statement of Ambassador
11 Herbert Stuart Okun." And there are only a few points, actually five.
12 And it's signed --
13 JUDGE MAY: Mr. Groome, what is being referred to?
14 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, it's a declaration that was submitted as
15 part of the confirmation materials. I have an English copy here for the
16 Chamber and for Ambassador Okun.
17 JUDGE MAY: Perhaps the Ambassador should have it. Let him see
18 what's being referred to.
19 Yes, Mr. Milosevic.
20 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
21 Q. Mr. Okun, you say under point 3 that I made remarks that are
22 indicative of my control regarding the political and military situation in
23 Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and then let us look at these remarks.
24 Under A, you say: "In connection with the Serb leaders in Eastern
25 Slavonia, Goran Hadzic, Slobodan Milosevic basically said that he was in
Page 17137
1 principle in agreement with the establishment of a UN peace mission in
2 Croatia and that Goran Hadzic would not oppose it. When Slobodan
3 Milosevic was asked to provide a map or a list of locations inhabited by
4 Serbs in Croatia, he stated that he would ask Goran Hadzic to provide such
5 a map."
6 So let me -- so I was -- in order to help you. So why did you
7 need this? If I said that I would ask him to provide you with this map,
8 why would that be any proof that I have control over him if I am assisting
9 you to acquire a map that I don't have and which he could probably provide
10 you with.
11 THE INTERPRETER: Interpreters do not have the text. We
12 apologise.
13 THE WITNESS: Several things indicated your authority over Hadzic.
14 The comment that he would do something that we'd asked you to do was a
15 normal comment, and clearly the President of Serbia has other things to do
16 than to provide maps, so that's the sort of thing one asks a subordinate
17 to do. We understood that.
18 The other thing, if I might just mention, at the same meeting when
19 Secretary Vance initially asked you about Goran Hadzic, you said that he
20 was a nice young man, and I indicated that in my diary notes. And I think
21 that was an accurate depiction of your attitude towards him, that he was a
22 nice young chap and that he would do what he was told. And there were
23 numerous indications of that state of affairs.
24 You will recall that at one time, and I've already testified to
25 this effect, you said that we would have no trouble with Hadzic and Babic,
Page 17138
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Page 17139
1 "believe me." That indicated control.
2 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
3 Q. That is exactly what I'm asking you. Do you assume since it is
4 not contested that I had not appointed Babic or Hadzic -- they were
5 elected by their Assemblies, and then of course naturally they had
6 contacts with Serbia, primarily to seek assistance because they were very
7 poor. Would you allow for the possibility that I had asked Hadzic prior
8 to this for his opinion and advocated that this be accepted and then spoke
9 to you about it rather than on the basis of any kind of control or any
10 ordering authority that I may have had over him? How could I have any
11 authority over bodies elected outside Serbia and without me knowing about
12 it? I didn't -- I didn't even know them before they became what they
13 became, leaders of those autonomous regions. Would you allow for the
14 possibility that I had consulted them, talked to then, suggested to them
15 that they accept and that they agreed, and then on the basis of all that,
16 I tell you there will be no trouble because they agree. And that is
17 exactly what you had asked me to do, to assist to ensure his acquiescence.
18 You were explaining this yesterday. I told you I would talk to them, and
19 that is what I did. I talked to them and they agreed. Is that right or
20 not?
21 JUDGE MAY: We'll get your question now.
22 THE WITNESS: Excuse me, Your Honour, I didn't hear what you said.
23 JUDGE MAY: Let's have a question. I was talking to the accused.
24 What's the question?
25 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
Page 17140
1 Q. Do you allow for the possibility that upon your request I spoke to
2 them and invested my authority in support of the peace plan and that I
3 informed you of this on the basis of the conversation I had with them and
4 not that I had any ability to give them any kind of orders?
5 A. Our understanding was that both were true: A, that you had spoken
6 with them; B, that your voice was controlling and they followed your
7 instructions.
8 Q. However, the fact that Babic refused to accept that plan, doesn't
9 it speak for itself, that is that in spite of my efforts, I could not give
10 them any orders? I used exclusively political and public means, writing
11 him a letter in which --
12 JUDGE MAY: That is the question. That is the question. The fact
13 that Babic refused to accept the plan, doesn't it show that in spite of
14 his efforts, he couldn't give them orders? That was the question.
15 THE WITNESS: Your Honour, Babic subsequently suffered a bad
16 accident, and I draw no conclusion from that, but the result -- the end
17 result, in fact, was that with the unblocking of the garrisons, which did
18 occur at the very end of 1991, the peacekeeping operation via the
19 Implementing Accord of 2 January 1992 went into effect and the
20 peacekeeping operation went forward.
21 Might I make a comment on the question of authority and titles for
22 the benefit of the Court?
23 JUDGE MAY: Briefly.
24 THE WITNESS: I'll be very brief. And I make this comment with no
25 comparative purposes or disrespect in mind. The comment is the following:
Page 17141
1 From 1929 to 1953, Joseph Stalin had no official position in the Soviet
2 Union. He was the general secretary of the Communist Party, that is all.
3 He was not the president of the country, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
4 Now, we all know who ran the Soviet Union between 1929 and 1953; a man who
5 had no official position. Thank you.
6 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] May we continue?
7 JUDGE MAY: Yes.
8 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
9 Q. Did you yourself note down, Mr. Okun, in this conversation - again
10 I'm afraid I can't find the date.
11 A. The date, Mr. --
12 Q. 1st to the 9th of December. And then Milosevic/Jovanovic --
13 December the 2nd. That's right. December the 2nd.
14 I say I will use all influence I have, but I am not their boss.
15 But I am quite sure that they will fulfil their promises. [In English] "I
16 will use my influence but I am not their master. I'm sure they will
17 fulfil whatever is promised." [Interpretation] This is in your diary.
18 A. So it is, on page 33. And your influence was very, very
19 influential.
20 Q. According to this, Mr. Okun, Cyrus Vance and you came to see me to
21 ask me for my assistance and support for the Serbian side in Croatia to
22 accept and agree to the peace operations of the UN. I gave you that
23 assistance and support. I invested my whole authority behind it, and now
24 that is my greatest fault, because it is proof that actually I had control
25 over them.
Page 17142
1 So instead of thanking me for the assistance I gave in the
2 establishment of the peace operations, you're accusing me of holding
3 things under my control in Krajina and in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Is that
4 what you are saying?
5 JUDGE MAY: Mr. Milosevic, you know that you can't comment. You
6 can ask the witness questions. He's agreed with you that he asked you for
7 your assistance and support. Now, that's as far as you can take it. The
8 rest is comment.
9 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
10 Q. I asked whether that was right. Nothing more than that.
11 JUDGE MAY: That wasn't the question.
12 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
13 Q. At your request for me to intervene with both authorities in both
14 of the Serbian Autonomous Regions, and I put my whole authority and
15 influence into it to support the peace operations, you draw the conclusion
16 that they are under my control on that basis. Do you consider that to be
17 logical?
18 A. Is that the question, do I consider it to be logical?
19 JUDGE MAY: It's not a question. It's another comment.
20 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
21 Q. All right, then. Now, do you know, on the 23rd of January, 1992,
22 Jovic, when he indicated how many soldiers had been killed and how many
23 incidents had broken out in Croatia, told you on that occasion and
24 indicated the problem of the leaders of the local Serbs and asked you for
25 assistance to wield your influence on them. Is that right?
Page 17143
1 A. Excuse me, what date are you referring to?
2 Q. I'm referring to the 23rd of January, 1992, the president of the
3 Yugoslav state Presidency, Jovic, indicated to you that you ought to
4 prevail upon them because we cannot ourselves achieve the results unless
5 you take an active part and become actively involved in it as well.
6 A. Yes. On page 43 I see Jovic saying: "We need your help to tell
7 people that a political solution would be found."
8 Q. Yes. That's right. Now, I have before me here a report by the
9 Secretary-General of the United Nations pursuant to UN Security Council
10 Resolution 721 of 1991, and in it he states in point 4 the following, and
11 he's talking about activities of Marrack Goulding -- you'll remember
12 Marrack Goulding, I'm sure, and his role in the preparations for the peace
13 operations, peacekeeping operations. He went to Eastern and to Western
14 Slavonia and also to Knin. And in the UN Secretary-General's report, it
15 says: "Up until the meeting of the leaders of the Serbs in three areas
16 under the protection of the UN, this came about following requests from
17 the federal and Serbian leadership that Mr. Goulding should give
18 additional explanations to the local leaders with respect to the UN
19 peacekeeping forces and plan and to react to the concern that was shown
20 and expressed by them with respect to that plan." Is that right?
21 A. What is the date of that report by the Secretary-General?
22 Q. This is the 4th of February, 1992, when the problems arose. And
23 I'm sure you'll remember the difficulties we had. And we had to use all
24 our influence, both the federal leadership and the leadership of Serbia in
25 order to achieve results and to see that the peace operations,
Page 17144
1 peacekeeping operations, were put in place. It was no easy matter; it was
2 a highly complex operation. And this is the UN Secretary-General's
3 report. So of course, this took place earlier because it is the report
4 of the 4th of February. And in point 4, he says Mr. Goulding had
5 talks in Belgrade on the 22nd of January, 1992 and then up until the
6 meeting on the 29th of January, he had further consultations, and so on
7 and so forth. And then he went to attend a meeting in all three areas
8 with the leaders of all the three areas under UN protection.
9 So I assume you're not challenging that.
10 Now, what I'm asking you is this: Were these joint efforts on the
11 part of the federal leadership and the leadership of Serbia to bring all
12 their influence to bear on the leaderships in Krajina, in the Krajinas, to
13 convince them to accept the peacekeeping operations, because we believed,
14 as it said, this does not pre-empt a political solution, but it does
15 ensure a political solution to be found in peace. And that was our main
16 argument and our desire, to find a political solution in conditions of
17 peace.
18 I hope that's not disputed.
19 A. No, that's not disputed. If I could come back to the first point,
20 for the Court, that you made about the visit.
21 You will recall, Your Honours, the Implementing Accord was dated
22 January 2, 1992. Mr. Vance, myself, the Secretary-General, the council
23 had taken the view that a period of about six weeks would be needed to
24 test the situation on the ground before the council itself would vote a
25 peacekeeping force. As we know from the current situation, if I may put
Page 17145
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Page 17146
1 it that way, the situation of the Security Council is a very serious
2 matter. They didn't want to vote a peacekeeping force if the cease-fire
3 didn't hold. The reason for that was the EC, in the fall of 1991, had
4 declared 15 or 20, we lost the count, everybody lost count. They had
5 declared so many cease-fires and they hadn’t lasted longer than it took
6 for the ink to dry on the paper. Everybody was very sceptical about
7 cease-fires, so we had decided that we would wait about five, six weeks.
8 The UN cease-fire, Secretary Vance's cessation of hostilities
9 worked. It held. And during the period there were, of course, random and
10 occasional acts of violence. That was bound to happen. So we sent out
11 the peacekeeping fellow to check up on the situation and to tell everybody
12 what the requirements for the peacekeeping plan were and how they would
13 work, what a peacekeeping operation was all about. Bear in mind there had
14 never been a peacekeeping operation on the continent of Europe in history.
15 This was the first peacekeeping operation, since the creation of the
16 United Nations, to take place on the European continent. So it was
17 understandable that people didn't know about it. And that is the
18 situation that the Secretary-General was describing in this interim report
19 to the Security Council and that Mr. Milosevic has correctly read from.
20 The date is also important. January 2nd was the Vance cessation
21 of hostilities arranged by Secretary Vance. This was early February, you
22 see, four weeks into the testing period. Seventeen days later, the
23 Security Council acted and adopted Resolution 743. So you see, this was
24 an interim report.
25 But I repeat, Mr. Milosevic has characterised it correctly.
Page 17147
1 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
2 Q. All right. Fine, Mr. Okun. I don't think there's anything being
3 disputed there. I just wish to ascertain whether it was in dispute how
4 far the federal leadership and the leadership of Serbia and I myself
5 personally had invested in order to implement the plan, to have the plan
6 come into force, to stop the war and to find a political solution under
7 peaceful conditions. I don't suppose that is in dispute.
8 A. No, it is not in dispute.
9 Q. Please, then, tell me this -- just let me have a look here.
10 You mention in your summary Dubrovnik. Is it true that on the 1st
11 of December, 1991, Admiral Brovet, General Kadijevic, and Borisav Jovic,
12 the then president, at a meeting give you explanations according to which
13 it was demilitarised 20 years ago and that all this was a matter of
14 provocation? On the part of Croatia, that is.
15 A. I believe that was their contention.
16 Q. In this statement of yours, it says the 2nd of December, 1991,
17 Cyrus Vance says: "Can I be assured that there will be no shelling of
18 Dubrovnik?" [In English] Kadijevic: "Dubrovnik has not been attacked."
19 Cyrus Vance: "But surroundings have." Kadijevic: "We demilitarised
20 Dubrovnik 20 years ago. Let Croats do same. Croatian propaganda. They
21 threw a hand grenade onto a facade."
22 [Interpretation] And he promises that he will check this out, what
23 was going on, et cetera. But in any event, you talked with the federal
24 leadership in Dubrovnik; right? And with the army too.
25 A. We spoke with both the federal leadership and the leadership of
Page 17148
1 the JNA, but we did not speak with them in Dubrovnik. We met them in
2 Belgrade.
3 Q. Yes, yes, in Belgrade. Now, on that same day, you came to see me,
4 and with you -- with us was Minister Jovanovic. He was with me. And
5 Vance says the following: He was dissatisfied. He was unhappy that
6 Geneva, 11/23 accords had not been implemented fully. "Milosevic: Me
7 too." Cyrus Vance says: "Good talk with General Kadijevic, had to work
8 things out, will call." I don't know what it says next. It says "Tudj."
9 What "Tudj" is I don't know. I'm sure you might.
10 JUDGE MAY: Let the witness find it.
11 THE WITNESS: What page are we on?
12 JUDGE MAY: Mr. Milosevic, what page are we on? Which day? 2nd
13 of December, it says.
14 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] 2nd of December. 2nd of December,
15 1215 to 1330 hours, meeting at my office and with Jovanovic present.
16 THE WITNESS: One moment, please.
17 MR. GROOME: It's page 30 of book 4.
18 THE WITNESS: Thank you. Yes. Mr. Vance says he had a good talk
19 with General Kadijevic, we have to work things out, and then it says,
20 "Will call Tudjman," meaning I - Vance - will call President Tudjman.
21 "We all have to work hard."
22 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
23 Q. Cyrus Vance then asked me what was going on in Dalmatia. My
24 answer was we had nothing to do with Dalmatia, just as we did not have
25 anything to do with Dalmatia. Is that right?
Page 17149
1 A. That's what the diary indicates you said.
2 Q. All right. Fine. And then on the 4th of December, once again you
3 had a meeting with Brovet. And he told you that Dubrovnik had been
4 demilitarised as far as the JNA was concerned but that weapons had to be
5 withdrawn from Dubrovnik and for that it was necessary to deblock the
6 barracks. That is what you yourself write in your diary, that you had a
7 conversation with Brovet. So first of all, you had a meeting with Jovic,
8 Kadijevic, and Brovet, you talked to them first, and that same day when
9 you came to see me in my office, you asked me what was going on in
10 Dalmatia and I told you that the Serbs had nothing to do with Dalmatia,
11 and then once again you talked to Brovet and he goes on to explain to you
12 what was going on in Dubrovnik. So you talked about that with the army.
13 A. Yes. We discussed the matter thoroughly. That was our job to do
14 so. I should also mention in this connection, since we're discussing the
15 very early days of December, that on December 6, Dubrovnik received the
16 heaviest shelling it received during the entire war, two days later. It
17 was the only time that Dubrovnik was shelled not only from land, I believe
18 it was the only time that it was shelled by sea.
19 Q. Yes, but, sir --
20 A. So when Admiral Brovet told us a few days earlier that the
21 shelling would cease, it's my duty to recall for the Court that two days
22 later, the shelling increased rather than decreasing, and that the navy
23 was involved. I'm not saying who gave orders to the navy, but we know who
24 shelled Dubrovnik from the sea.
25 Q. Mr. Okun, all I'm doing is looking at one aspect of this issue.
Page 17150
1 You talked to the federal leadership, you talked to the army, and you
2 discussed with them the issue of Dubrovnik. When you came to see me with
3 Cyrus Vance on that same day, Cyrus Vance asked me whether I knew anything
4 about Dalmatia, and I said that we had nothing to do with Dalmatia, that
5 the Serbs had nothing to do with Dalmatia. And then you continued, of
6 course, to communicate with the army or, rather, with the federal
7 leadership to discuss these issues. So that is quite undisputed.
8 May we move on now, please, because I wish to get through as much
9 as possible and quite obviously I'm not going to have enough time to ask
10 you all the questions I wish to ask you.
11 On the 1st of December, the 1st of December, therefore, did I in
12 our discussions indicate the great number of refugees from Slavonia and
13 that there was a great problem on the Croatian side, that they wanted to
14 continue the war and that in fact Genscher wished to continue the war.
15 And you made a note of this yourself in your diary. Is that how it was or
16 no? Just give me a yes or no answer, please, and then we can move on.
17 A. You're talking about the meeting of December 1. My recollection,
18 but I will confirm it, is that you gave the figure of 140.000 Serb
19 refugees from Western Slavonia.
20 I'm not finding it in my notes.
21 Q. I'll find it for you. It is at the bottom of the page. This is
22 the translation of it, and it says the following --
23 A. Are you sure that's December 1?
24 Q. Let me just check. I'm not quite sure. Was it the 1st -- no. It
25 was the 2nd of December. I do apologise. The 2nd of December. And then
Page 17151
1 further down, I don't know what you have in your original diary, but it
2 says: "That's why the Croats continue the world war. Genscher always
3 says, if war continues, recognition will follow. [In English] "That's
4 invitation to keep fighting." [Interpretation] That's an invitation to
5 keep fighting. That's what I told you and that's what you noted down.
6 I'm quoting from your diary.
7 A. Thank you. I have found your citation. I've found it.
8 Q. I hope that I've read it out correctly.
9 A. If I could take the first part, Mr. Milosevic. The -- it's on
10 page 34 of Vance diary number 4, where -- where you say that 140.000 Serb
11 refugees have fled Western Slavonia into "free" Slavonia. "Will get
12 information for you. Talk to Hadzic tomorrow." Yes, that part is in the
13 diaries on page 34.
14 I should add, for the benefit of the Court, that subsequent to
15 this, Mr. Vance and I checked the population figures of Serbs in Western
16 Slavonia through the opstina figures from the official -- sorry, from the
17 official Yugoslav census, and the population -- the Serb population in
18 Western Slavonia did not exceed 40 or 50.000 at the utmost. So the figure
19 of 140.000 Serb refugees from Western Slavonia was impossible based on our
20 check against the Yugoslav official statistics.
21 On the question of Genscher and Mr. Milosevic's -- President
22 Milosevic's remarks at the time, I'm not seeing them, but in the interest
23 of speed, I will assume you are correct in reading them. I just don't
24 find them. What I do see is concern over Germany, Italy, and the Vatican
25 on page 35.
Page 17152
1 MR. GROOME: I would direct the witness's attention to -- it's not
2 working. I will talk louder. The witness's attention to the bottom of
3 page 37 in that diary entry.
4 THE WITNESS: Yes. Thank you. I found it.
5 THE INTERPRETER: Microphone for the witness, please. Mr. Okun.
6 THE WITNESS: Can you hear me?
7 JUDGE MAY: Yes.
8 THE INTERPRETER: Yes.
9 THE WITNESS: On page 35 of the diary it records President
10 Milosevic as saying German attitudes is to give a gift of recognition to
11 Slovenia and Croatia before Christmas, and he expressed concern over
12 Germany, Italy and the Vatican.
13 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
14 Q. A little further on from there you made the following entry--
15 A. Yes, I see it. Yes, I see it.
16 Q. [In English] "That's why Croats continue war. Genscher always
17 says if war continues, recognition will follow. That's an invitation to
18 keep fighting."
19 A. Well, that was your assertion and I so noted it in my diary.
20 Q. [Interpretation] Was that true? Is that correct? Was that in
21 fact an invitation to keep fighting? Keep fighting and you'll get
22 recognition. Does that at least throw some light on the role that Germany
23 played in breaking up Yugoslavia?
24 JUDGE MAY: No. That's not a matter for the witness.
25 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
Page 17153
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Page 17154
1 Q. Well, are we contesting Genscher's statement, "If the war
2 continues, recognition will follow"? That's why I'm saying it. That's an
3 invitation to --
4 JUDGE MAY: All he has recorded, the witness, I should say, has
5 recorded is what you said, and that's what you said. If it's relevant,
6 you can call some evidence about it or you can give evidence about it
7 yourself, if you want, but right now we're examining the witness. So
8 would you concentrate on that.
9 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] All right. Fine. Let's move on
10 then.
11 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
12 Q. Do you remember that I indicated to you, when it came to Bosnia,
13 you asked me about Bosnia, said that was a problem, and I said that the
14 problem was that Izetbegovic bore in mind a purely Islamic republic.
15 That's what he had in mind. And I'm sure you'll recall his declaration
16 that there can be no co-existence, cohabitation between the Islamic -- I
17 can't remember his exact words, the word he used, I've already quoted him
18 and it's been recorded, and of course, his documents are recorded, but
19 anyway, the Islamic and non-Islamic institutions, and the non-Islamic
20 institutions or communities, of course, were more than half of
21 Bosnia-Herzegovina, in fact. And that I told you on that occasion that he
22 was receiving resources from Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and that I was
23 surprised how come America and Europe could support something like that.
24 And that is something that you will find once again in that diary of
25 yours.
Page 17155
1 JUDGE MAY: Yes. Ambassador, if you would find that, please.
2 THE WITNESS: You made that assertion and I so reported it. It's
3 on page 38 of Vance mission diary number 4, the date December 2. You made
4 that assertion.
5 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
6 Q. Very well. Did you have any contentions to make in that regard
7 then?
8 A. Secretary Vance and I did not believe that it was our position on
9 matters like that to get into an argument with you or with anybody. We
10 took on board what you said, we listened carefully, and as you see, I duly
11 noted accurately what you said. Whether we agreed with it or not, it was
12 important to get down the facts that you made the statement. And it was
13 at that meeting that you and Jovanovic suggested we meet Dr. Karadzic,
14 which we did, and which we've already discussed. This is all in the
15 diary.
16 Q. All right. Then you go on to speak about the meeting, and you
17 speak about the Presidency of Yugoslavia, and we draw your attention to
18 you, Milosevic/Jovanovic. It's a matter for the Federal Presidency, peace
19 and security. That comes under their competence and authority.
20 A. That was your statement, yes.
21 Q. All right. I don't assume that we're contesting that. But what I
22 want is to link this up, to link what we discussed then with the facts
23 that came to follow. So please let's move on.
24 Is it true and correct that at the meeting that we had on the 15th
25 of April, 1992, that I told you loud and clear that Serbs and Muslims can
Page 17156
1 live together and live together in peace and that the continuity of that
2 state was what was called for, but the problem was that Izetbegovic wished
3 to have a separate republic or, rather, he wished to have some kind of
4 Islamic federation. Is that right?
5 And I have it here. This is it. Milosevic -- this is what you
6 say: "Milo: Came promises [In English] B and H. Very tragic. Nobody
7 can win there. Only death will result. Serbs and Muslims can live
8 together. All citizens in B and H support peace. Need to continue
9 conference on B and H." [Interpretation] That's what I've just been
10 saying, and that's what I said then. The conflicts had started.
11 Have you found that passage? I'm afraid I've got this wrong
12 again, the date wrong. Is it -- yes, the 15th of April. That's right.
13 15th of September [as interpreted], Belgrade, 1030 hours. And 645. No.
14 That's another meeting. After that, 0645, Milosevic/Jovanovic. And then
15 we come to what I quoted. "The main problem is B and H. Very tragic.
16 Nobody can win there. Only death will result. [In English] Serbs and
17 Muslims can live together. All citizens in B and H support peace. Need
18 to continue conference on B and H."
19 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, if I can be of assistance, Mr. Milosevic
20 is quoting from page 39, and that is a meeting on the 15th of April.
21 THE WITNESS: Yes, that's on page 39. I see it. And you note we
22 agreed with that. We reported that General Hadzic agreed.
23 This, I have to note for the Court, was a conversation on April
24 15th. There had already been about five or six weeks of fighting in
25 Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the shelling of Sarajevo was about to
Page 17157
1 commence.
2 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
3 Q. I apologise, Mr. Okun. I'm not talking about that now. What I
4 was asking you was this, about your entry here: "And that was our
5 position, that nobody could win and that the results would be death, only
6 death, that they could live together and that all the citizens support
7 peace," and then a few lines down, you go on to say "Ize" -- and I assume
8 that's Izetbegovic, I say, is using typical Islamic fundmentalism. [In
9 English] "Ize is using typical Islamic fundamentalism." [Interpretation]
10 That's the problem.
11 A. So I heard you say and so I noted in the diary, yes.
12 Q. Therefore, it was our position that nobody could win in that war,
13 that all that could ensue was tragedy and that we had to go back to the
14 conference table and support the peace effort. That was quite clear.
15 Now, do you know that all three parties accepted Cutileiro's plan,
16 the plan that was a sort of subconference to Carrington's conference, a
17 runner-up to Carrington's conference?
18 A. Yes, that's correct. All three parties initially accepted the
19 Cutileiro plan.
20 Q. Before that, there had been no conflicts in Bosnia-Herzegovina
21 whatsoever. The conflicts could have just been political and verbal, but
22 no physical conflicts took place. Is that right or not?
23 A. That is not correct. As we've reported earlier, there was
24 fighting as early as November 1991 and --
25 Q. You have no evidence of that. You say that Ante Markovic told you
Page 17158
1 that.
2 A. Well before April 1992, there were authenticated reports of ethnic
3 cleansing. That is -- that is to say, the forced expulsion of Muslims and
4 a few Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
5 Q. Please. I'm not talking about April. The first attacks occurred
6 when the 100 and something Brigade from Croatia - I don't know the number,
7 I spoke about that here already - attacked Bosanski Brod and virtually
8 killed the Serb population of the village of Sijekovac. That was the
9 beginning of the conflicts in Bosnia-Herzegovina, that is, by the invasion
10 of Croatian forces into the territory of Bosnia-Herzegovina, and that
11 occurred after the Cutileiro plan. Do you remember that or not?
12 A. I am aware that that was a Serbian contention.
13 Q. Very well. So you have no information about that. But since you
14 do know that all three sides signed the Cutileiro plan, do you know that
15 after that, being persuaded by your ambassador, Warren Zimmermann,
16 Izetbegovic withdrew his signature from the Cutileiro plan?
17 A. You've made two points there. First point is correct, that the
18 Bosnian government, President Izetbegovic, withdrew his assent to the
19 Cutileiro plan after he returned to Sarajevo from Western Europe where it
20 had been signed.
21 The second point, that he did so at the urging of Ambassador
22 Zimmerman, is not for me to comment on except to report that Ambassador
23 Zimmerman has denied that repeatedly, and I believe Ambassador Zimmerman.
24 Q. I don't know that he denied it. On the contrary, I think even in
25 his book he wrote that he was not very cautious when he said to him, "If
Page 17159
1 you don't like it, why are you signing it?" But I don't have to debate
2 that with you.
3 JUDGE MAY: No, you don't. It's not for this witness to answer.
4 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] No, no. Certainly. I don't have to
5 discuss that matter with this witness. But I always respect solidarity,
6 even when it has nothing to do with the facts.
7 JUDGE MAY: That was a totally unnecessary comment, as you know.
8 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
9 Q. Is it true that on the 6th of May, 1992, you had a meeting with me
10 when I told you quite specifically that I supported negotiations between
11 the parties in Bosnia and Herzegovina and that we would like the problems
12 of Bosnia and Herzegovina to be resolved and that it was indispensable for
13 the UN to be present there and to control the situation there. Do you
14 remember that?
15 A. Yes. It's so noted in the diary that you made that statement in
16 Brussels on May 6. It's on page 141. And the previous page also has some
17 comments of yours concerning the situation in Bosnia.
18 Q. I said we support BH talks. Whatever you decide is all right with
19 us. Cutileiro says something then. [In English] "We want to finish those
20 talks on Bosnia-Herzegovina. It's not up to us, not our problem."
21 [Interpretation] And I speak about talks in Skopje between Izetbegovic and
22 Adzic. And then there's reference to the UN, and I say if the UN
23 withdraws, it means war will start again. And then I also say that all
24 parties will agree to the talks and that that is the only way out.
25 Now, let us go back for a moment, because you mention here that I
Page 17160
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Page 17161
1 said to you that we had nothing to do with Bosnia-Herzegovina as it was
2 another country, and that Izetbegovic and Adzic were having talks in
3 Skopje when Izetbegovic asked that those members of the JNA who are from
4 Bosnia and Herzegovina should remain in Bosnia and Herzegovina, whereas
5 members from Bosnia and Herzegovina, members of the army who are situated
6 elsewhere outside Bosnia and Herzegovina, should be sent back to
7 Bosnia-Herzegovina. That was what Izetbegovic requested. And you
8 explained here that the JNA in Bosnia-Herzegovina had been transformed
9 into the army of Republika Srpska, and I would like that to be cleared up
10 now.
11 The JNA, before the break-up of Yugoslavia, before the destruction
12 of Yugoslavia, was present throughout the territory of Yugoslavia, from
13 Vardar, the river Vardar to Mount Triglav.
14 When Yugoslavia was broken up - let's not discuss with you who was
15 behind it all; I've spoken about that - what happened then was that
16 virtually all the armies that came into being, the Croatian, the Slovenian
17 and the army of Republika Srpska, and the army of the Muslim Federation,
18 and the HVO in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Croatian forces, and the
19 Macedonian army and the army of the FRY came into being and were formed
20 out of the parts of the former JNA. Is that right or not?
21 A. We've already discussed that. Yes, of course that's correct.
22 Yes.
23 Q. Therefore, it is not right to speak about the control of the army
24 of Yugoslavia after the army of Republika Srpska had been formed because
25 it had become the army of Republika Srpska and the army of Yugoslavia
Page 17162
1 existed separately, and we've already discussed all this. And all the
2 members of the JNA up until then who were from Serbia would withdraw to
3 the territory of Serbia. They would not stay on in the territory of
4 Bosnia-Herzegovina.
5 You mentioned General Mladic. I agree with you that he was an
6 exceptionally capable general. That is how people saw him.
7 JUDGE MAY: Mr. Milosevic --
8 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
9 Q. But do you know --
10 JUDGE MAY: Rather than rambling, can you come to a question,
11 please.
12 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
13 Q. Do you know that General Mladic is also from Bosnia and
14 Herzegovina? He was born there, in Bosnia and Herzegovina. And that he
15 was appointed commander of the staff the army of Republika Srpska by the
16 Assembly of Republika Srpska.
17 A. Is that a question?
18 Q. Yes: Do you know that?
19 A. Yes. We knew that General Mladic had been born in Bosnia. He
20 told us so himself, and it was a matter of common knowledge.
21 We also knew, and it was a matter of common knowledge, that the
22 Bosnian Serb army received logistic support - gasoline, shells, and
23 payment - from Serbia. I've already reported on that.
24 Q. Very well. Let us summarise this part of the examination: In
25 your diary, which I have managed to review up to a point, you note a large
Page 17163
1 number of meetings that you had with representatives of the Yugoslav
2 Federation, with either civilian or military or other leaders,
3 representatives of the army, the General Staff, representatives of federal
4 government and so on. Virtually, you had -- in fact, you had the fewest
5 number of meetings with me in that period of time while you were touring
6 and holding these meetings. After all, by quantitative analysis of these
7 data --
8 JUDGE MAY: Let us come to a question.
9 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
10 Q. Is that your impression or not?
11 A. I haven't done a count of the meetings. This could, of course, be
12 done. I would simply state that we always, Mr. Vance and I, invariably
13 tried to see you first when we were in Belgrade, and it was clear
14 throughout, and I don't think it was disputed by anybody, that you were
15 the most important person to see. So I think one should look at this from
16 the point of view of quality rather than quantity.
17 But of course we tried to see all of the relevant actors. That
18 was our job.
19 Q. I just wanted to make this clear before we go back to the Vance
20 Plan -- I'm using this customary term though I fully appreciate that is
21 not its official name. Since you participated in these important events,
22 do you recollect that on the 7th of July, 1991, under the auspices of the
23 European Community at Brioni, a meeting was held of members of the SFRY
24 Presidency, that is of Yugoslavia, the leaderships of Croatia and
25 Slovenia, the president of the federal government, that is the Prime
Page 17164
1 Minister, and federal Ministers of Internal Affairs and National Defence.
2 Therefore, Serbia is not there, Bosnia is not there, there's no
3 Montenegro, no Macedonia, just the federal leadership, federal ministers,
4 Federal Presidency, and the federal government. And a joint declaration
5 was adopted on that occasion which came to be known as the Brioni
6 declaration. Do you remember that?
7 A. Well, I was not present nor was I officially involved in any form
8 with that meeting, but I am aware that various meetings took place during
9 the summer of 1991 with the EC.
10 Q. So you were not familiar with the events that preceded your
11 activities. I assumed that you inquired about developments before your
12 mission started, and that is why I asked you that question.
13 A. Yes, we were aware of the previous situations, including the Igalo
14 meeting and the earlier meetings of the Conference on Yugoslavia.
15 Naturally, it was our duty to prepare ourselves for our mission.
16 Q. Mr. Okun, talking about that, let's cover that question, too, as
17 you produced an exhibit here. Did we agree that the position of the
18 European Community was not to recognise the so-called Rump Presidency, and
19 in that connection, we had that walkout at the conference, what we spoke
20 about this morning, a walkout by Kostic and the others?
21 A. In the interests of time, Mr. President, since you raised that
22 point, I will be brief. There was constant disagreement about the
23 authority and the legality of the Rump Presidency.
24 Q. Yes. Fine. You presented here the agreement on a cease-fire
25 signed by Tudjman, myself, Kadijevic, and Vance. Do you remember the
Page 17165
1 conversation we had about this? You say there's no signature of the
2 Federal Presidency, but the Federal Presidency was not recognised in those
3 days. Is that a fact?
4 A. That depends which Federal Presidency you're talking about. That
5 was the issue; the rump or the full Presidency.
6 Q. Therefore, it was not invited to sign, otherwise it would have
7 signed it, but you did not recognise it. And the signature of the
8 Presidency was missing because you did not wish to agree to the Presidency
9 signing it. Do you remember that? Because you didn't recognise the Rump
10 Presidency, because you called it a Rump Presidency though it was working
11 on the basis of its own document adopted when it was not a Rump
12 Presidency, according to the provisions of that document during a state of
13 extraordinary conditions. Is that right or not?
14 A. You make two points. First that the Presidency did not sign the
15 Geneva Accord of November 23, 1991; second, that it was because they were
16 not invited and somehow disrespected by Mr. Vance.
17 The first point is correct; they did not sign. The second point
18 is not correct. The reason -- the reason for that is, as I've testified
19 earlier, it was clearly understood by Mr. Vance and Lord Carrington, who
20 was present, that your signature sufficed.
21 JUDGE MAY: Yes. Well, that's the time for adjournment. We're
22 going to adjourn now. Twenty minutes.
23 --- Recess taken at 12.16 p.m.
24 --- On resuming at 12.41 p.m.
25 JUDGE MAY: Yes, Mr. Milosevic.
Page 17166
1 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
2 Q. So, Mr. Okun, was the Federal Presidency invited to sign that
3 agreement or not?
4 A. I don't recall.
5 THE INTERPRETER: Microphone, please.
6 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
7 Q. If you don't remember --
8 A. I don't recall. As I say, it was Secretary Vance's understanding
9 that your signature sufficed. We had also had occasion previously to
10 discuss with you, among others, the question, the controversial question
11 of the Rump Presidency versus the full Presidency, and that was in issue.
12 Q. But you remember that my position was that that Presidency has
13 legality and that it cannot lose its legal status because some of its
14 members had arbitrarily abandoned the work of the Presidency. Is that
15 right or not, Mr. Okun?
16 A. It is correct to say that the issue was a controversial one.
17 Q. Very well. Let's say something now about my signature. Is it
18 contested that I invested my entire political reputation in those days in
19 the acceptance of that plan and the cessation of hostilities?
20 A. It is correct to say that you and others were instrumental in
21 bringing about the acceptance of the peacekeeping operation, and it would
22 also be correct to say that your influence over the other actors, all of
23 them on the Serbian side, was essential to their acquiescence in
24 Mr. Vance's proposals.
25 Q. Very well. Therefore, things are slightly different, I would say,
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Page 17168
1 Mr. Okun. So let's clear this up, if we can.
2 If you recollect, I explained that very nicely in those days that
3 I had nothing to sign since Serbia was not a party to the war and has no
4 troops under its command. And then Lord Carrington had the idea, after
5 acknowledging that this was true, he said that both he and Vance, because
6 of my political reputation, the agreement with my signature would have a
7 far greater impact, and then they added this definition which is written
8 in the text. The wording was "Under their political influence." That is
9 the signatories, the parties, commit themselves to the cessation of
10 hostilities by forces under their command. And as there was no one under
11 my command, then this Solomonic solution was found for me to sign it by
12 saying "Or under their political influence." And there is no doubt that I
13 did use all my political influence to have that agreement signed. Wasn't
14 that right? I remember that very clearly, and I think you should too.
15 A. Of course I do. As I've said, Mr. Vance was of the firm
16 conviction, as was Lord Carrington, I believe, and I know I was, that by
17 your signature was given the assent of the political forces of Serbia,
18 Serbian-controlled political forces, Serbian-influenced political forces.
19 Additionally, we understood your signature to indicate the assent, and
20 this is so recorded in the document, of the paramilitaries and the
21 irregulars. That was Mr. Vance's view, and I believe it turned out to be
22 the correct view.
23 Q. So you asked me to sign it because of my political reputation to
24 assist peace and not because I had anyone under my command over there.
25 That is quite clear, isn't it, Mr. Okun?
Page 17169
1 A. With all due respect, I would say the opposite is quite clear;
2 namely, that you had control.
3 Q. I cannot spend any more time on this, but you remember the
4 discussion when I said that I had no one under my command and I couldn't
5 sign it, and then Lord Carrington agreed with me and said, "All right,
6 under political influence then." So I certainly didn't have anyone under
7 my command. And I signed it because I wanted to put my reputation behind
8 it, and this seems to be taken against me now, because I wanted the
9 killing to stop.
10 But, Mr. Okun, let us go back to what you said a moment ago, that
11 you were aware of developments before you arrived. Do you remember, and I
12 was talking about the Brioni declaration, that a settlement was adopted, a
13 solution was adopted for overcoming the crisis in Yugoslavia, and it was
14 said that only the people's of Yugoslavia could decide about their future,
15 that the negotiations must start immediately, and that all sides must
16 refrain from any unilateral acts and especially from any acts of violence.
17 Do you remember that?
18 A. That was the general thrust of the EC approach, yes.
19 Q. And do you remember that on the 9th of July, the European
20 parliament, at a sitting in Strasbourg, adopted a resolution on Yugoslavia
21 whereby it did not support unilateral acts of secession?
22 A. I don't recall that specifically, but I don't contest your
23 asserting it.
24 Q. And are you aware of the fact that, shortly after that, on the
25 12th of July, 1991, the Presidency of SFRY adopted the Brioni declaration
Page 17170
1 and decided that by the 18th of July, all armed formations should be
2 demobilised with the exception of the JNA and regular peacetime police
3 forces, so that the situation be restored to what it was before the 21st
4 of July on the borders of the country and that all barracks be unblocked.
5 This was certainly an important decision which everyone had to be aware
6 of.
7 A. Well, yes, of course we were aware of the basic documents.
8 Q. And do you remember, Mr. Okun, that on the 3rd of September, 1991,
9 here in The Hague, for the reasons that you gave as Holland was the chair
10 of the European Community in those days and that is why The Hague was
11 chosen, a declaration on Yugoslavia was adopted whereby a Conference on
12 Yugoslavia was announced to be held here in The Hague on the 7th of
13 December. So the declaration was adopted on the 3rd of September. And
14 the conference was to have adopted a mechanism whereby, by peaceful means,
15 contradictory aspirations of the Yugoslav peoples would be realised on the
16 basis of the following principles. This is the EC declaration on
17 Yugoslavia. First, unilateral change of borders is not allowed by use of
18 force. Second, protection of all in Yugoslavia; and third, full respect
19 of all legitimate interests and aspirations. Do you remember that
20 declaration of the European Community?
21 A. Yes, I am aware of that declaration. That was the one that
22 established, as we've noted earlier, the Conference on Yugoslavia under
23 Lord Carrington's chairmanship.
24 Q. So contrary to Strasbourg and contrary to the declaration of the
25 European Community on Yugoslavia, so quite in contradiction to those
Page 17171
1 adopted principles, at the Conference on Yugoslavia, and this is something
2 we've already discussed and I won't go back to it, a solution was adopted
3 abolishing Yugoslavia?
4 JUDGE MAY: Mr. Milosevic, this sounds like argument again. Now,
5 you can ask the witness about what he saw or what he heard, what he wrote
6 in his diary, but his opinions and the rest of it you cannot ask. So
7 let's move on. You can argue your case in front of us in due course.
8 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Very well, Mr. May. I'm just
9 talking about an overnight change of positions, because first Yugoslavia
10 was offered good services, and then the proposal was made to abolish
11 Yugoslavia through its own free will.
12 I shall have to skip over quite a number of questions, because my
13 time is very short.
14 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
15 Q. Do you remember that on the 9th of November, 1991, the Presidency
16 of SFRY addressed a letter to the UN Security Council, requesting the
17 urgent dispatch of UN peacekeeping forces to Croatia? And in response to
18 this request, Resolution 71 was adopted, of the 7th of November. Of
19 course upon the recommendation of Cyrus Vance, but the request was made by
20 the Presidency of the SFRY and addressed to the UN Security Council. Do
21 you remember that?
22 A. I remember that was the previous month and we have reported on
23 this in response to questions, that Secretary Vance and I were reaching
24 the conclusion that a UN peacekeeping operation could be of assistance.
25 So that this request that you mentioned was consistent with Mr. Vance's
Page 17172
1 judgement of the situation.
2 Q. And do you recollect that on the 23rd of November, 1991, so the
3 next day after Cyrus Vance's meeting about the possibilities of sending
4 peacekeeping forces to Croatia, that the largest offensive was launched
5 against Western Slavonia when all JNA units had received orders to cease
6 all activities? And the Croatian paramilitary forces cleansed Podravska
7 Slatina, Orahovica, Slavonska Pozega, and so on, on the 23rd of November,
8 1991?
9 A. It was no secret that fighting continued throughout Croatia,
10 despite the best efforts of all parties, until January 2 at the signature
11 of the Implementing Accord. That was the fact --
12 Q. I am not talking about any general conflicts, but I'm talking of
13 an attack by the Croatian forces against Western Slavonia. There was no
14 attack by Serbian forces. They were all awaiting peace to be achieved.
15 They did not engage in any kind of offensive activities. They were in
16 their homes and defending those homes. This attack on Western Slavonia
17 was an attack on Serbian areas inhabited by Serbs. Is that right or not,
18 Mr. Okun? Just give me a yes or no answer. If it's not right, say no.
19 A. It is right to say that Vukovar fell to the JNA on November 18.
20 It is right to say that Dubrovnik was heavily shelled on December 6. It
21 may be right to say that there was fighting in Slavonia. As you know, as
22 I know, as the world knows, fighting continued throughout Croatia.
23 Q. I was speaking about a meeting that Cyrus Vance had on the 22nd of
24 November, and the next day, on the 23rd of November, after an agreement
25 had been reached to cease all hostilities, an offensive was launched. And
Page 17173
1 that is different from what you are saying.
2 Do you remember that in addition to that attack, the Croatian
3 side --
4 JUDGE MAY: No. He's not accepting there was an attack. All he's
5 accepting is that there was fighting. Now, move on from there.
6 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] So Mr. Okun is denying that after
7 the meeting with Vance on the 22nd, already on the 23rd, there was an
8 attack.
9 JUDGE MAY: He says he doesn't know. Just fighting.
10 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] That's okay. I don't mind at all.
11 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
12 Q. Please, do you remember that in addition to that attack, Croatia
13 carried out 794 attacks on the JNA?
14 JUDGE MAY: You are not going to get away with misrepresenting the
15 evidence. The attack is not accepted. Now, move on from there.
16 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
17 Q. I'm talking of the period from the 23rd of November. That is from
18 the meeting that Cyrus Vance had on the 22nd with President Franjo Tudjman
19 and others, that from that date, that is the date following the meeting at
20 question the peacekeeping operations were agreed on, until the 20th of
21 December, within the period of that one month, there were so many attacks
22 on units, barracks, planes, naval vessels, military columns, and so on.
23 Do you know anything about that?
24 A. As I have been asked and responded, there were attacks on both
25 sides. There were continuing hostilities in Croatia until January 2,
Page 17174
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Page 17175
1 1992. I've already been asked and I've already sought to answer questions
2 about our visit to Osijek on December 2 -- excuse me, December 3, 1991,
3 whether the city was being shelled, while it was being shelled by the JNA.
4 Yes, there was fighting.
5 Q. And do you recollect the meeting of the 13th of December, 1991,
6 the coordinating bureau of the non-aligned countries, held in New York, to
7 discuss the situation in Yugoslavia and that the conclusions made were
8 that for a lasting political solution to the crisis, they should give up
9 attempts which could lead to the undermining of the sovereignty,
10 territorial integrity, and international legal subjectivity of
11 Yugoslavia. Do you happen to recall that? There were efforts made in the
12 world along those lines.
13 A. Well, I wasn't aware that the non-aligned movement had taken this
14 position, but if you say so.
15 Q. All right. And I hope it's not being contested that Resolution
16 724 of the 15th of December, 1991, called upon all states to refrain from
17 any actions which would contribute to the heightening of tensions. I
18 assume you remember that.
19 A. Yes.
20 Q. And do you remember this: This was the Resolution of the 15th of
21 December, 1991, calling for all states to refrain from all actions which
22 would contribute to a heightening of tensions. And do you recall that on
23 the 17th of December, that is to say two days later, a meeting was held of
24 the Foreign Ministers of the European Community, and in their declaration
25 they state the criteria for recognition of new states and the declaration
Page 17176
1 on Yugoslavia was adopted and that this first document sets the criteria
2 which were to serve as guidelines to the European Community and
3 recognising new states, and I quote: "In keeping with the usual standards
4 of international practice and political reality in each individual case,"
5 and so on and so forth.
6 Therefore, is this act on the part of the ministers of the
7 European Community imposed by Germany, was it contrary to the Resolution,
8 Resolution 724, taken two days previously, calling upon all states to
9 refrain from all actions which would contribute to the increase of
10 tensions?
11 A. Are you asking for my opinion on that? Is that the question, my
12 view of the relationship between the EC and the United Nations?
13 Q. Well, is this an obvious attempt to do quite the reverse, the
14 reverse of what Resolution 724 had asked for?
15 JUDGE MAY: No. That's a comment, not for the witness.
16 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] So it's not up to the witness to
17 assess whether the council of ministers of the EC had in fact violated
18 international law.
19 JUDGE MAY: No.
20 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] Very well.
21 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
22 Q. Now, do you know that on 23rd of December, Germany officially
23 recognised the independence and sovereignty of Slovenia and Croatia,
24 without waiting for any kind of further political negotiations?
25 A. I'm aware of that.
Page 17177
1 Q. All right. Tell me this then: What did this step on the part of
2 Germany mean from the aspects of international law and with respect to
3 relations within Yugoslavia?
4 JUDGE MAY: No. You can ask him what the effect was, if you want,
5 because he might be able to comment on that -- the witness, I should say,
6 might be able to comment on that. But you can't ask him about aspects of
7 international law.
8 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
9 Q. Do you remember that Tudjman, on the 28th of January, 1992,
10 informed the fact that he withdrew the acceptance of the plan because, as
11 he told Goulding after the recognition, there were no more outstanding
12 political issues to negotiate. Do you know about that or not?
13 A. Excuse me, I believe you're referring to 28 January 1992. Well,
14 the fact is that President Tudjman accepted the peacekeeping operation.
15 So I think that speaks for itself.
16 Q. Well, after subsequent pressure. But this is not contested,
17 because that's what it says in UN documents.
18 And do you know that in the council of Ministers of the European
19 Community, and the European Council as well, organs of the European
20 Community, that they supported the territorial integrity of the SFRY?
21 JUDGE MAY: Can you answer for the European Community, Ambassador?
22 THE WITNESS: I cannot, but I can give the Court the gist of the
23 decisions reached by the "Commission d'Arbitrage," the Arbitration
24 Commission set up officially by the European Community to adjudicate these
25 questions. If you are interested, I can give you what they -- tell you
Page 17178
1 what they said. But I don't want to take Mr. Milosevic's time. I want to
2 be sensitive to his concerns about time. It's up to him and to you.
3 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
4 Q. I am endeavouring to establish, Mr. Okun, how far such acts were
5 in contradiction to the generally expressed will, both of the citizens of
6 Yugoslavia and the international community, to preserve the integrity of
7 Yugoslavia.
8 Do you know that the council of ministers of the OSCE or the KEBS,
9 as it was known at the time, at its meeting in Berlin in mid-1991 adopted
10 a resolution which, among other things, expresses support to the unity and
11 territorial integrity of Yugoslavia?
12 A. As I've said, the answer to your question, Mr. Milosevic, as to
13 whether the EC supported territorial integrity was given to the
14 arbitration commission. The arbitration commission, in December, in an
15 official avis stated its opinion that Yugoslavia was in, and I use the
16 French because it was given in French, "un processus de dissolution," that
17 Yugoslavia was undergoing a process of dissolution. That was the
18 judgement of the EC's arbitration commission, the commission to which they
19 had entrusted the legal question that you're putting to me now.
20 So I think all I can do is report what the position was of the
21 arbitration commission.
22 Q. Mr. Okun, I'm talking about the fact that we had confidence and
23 trust in the international community at the time, and we believed in the
24 forthrightness of their endeavour to support the integrity of Yugoslavia
25 and that coincides with our own interests. For example, do you know that
Page 17179
1 your State Secretary of the day, the Secretary of State, James Baker, at
2 the end of his visit to Yugoslavia in June 1991, said that the United
3 States supported a democratic and unified Yugoslavia and that he made
4 special emphasis on the fact that the United States would not recognise
5 unilateral acts of secession.
6 A. Secretary James A. Baker was a very wise man, remains such. There
7 was, it has to be said, without rehearsing the history of the period,
8 there was an evolution of the situation at the time.
9 Q. Mr. Okun, is it clear that the integrity of Yugoslavia or, rather,
10 as we used to say a great Yugoslavia, the kind that existed up until its
11 destruction and breaking up, that this came about under pressure from
12 Germany and as a function of the politics --
13 JUDGE MAY: We've heard this case put time and time again. It's
14 of no relevance, as far as I can see, to these charges or to this
15 witness's evidence. You should concentrate on what's in the indictment,
16 Mr. Milosevic. It's that that you're charged with.
17 Yes. Now if you've got any more questions on a different topic to
18 this witness you can ask them, otherwise, we're going to let him go.
19 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] I have many more questions, and I'm
20 going to skip over some of them, Mr. May, because this witness testified
21 about a great many things.
22 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
23 Q. Do you know that on the 14th of February in Sarajevo, the work of
24 the international conference on Bosnia-Herzegovina started its work and
25 the chairman of the meeting was Cutileiro at the time, under the auspices
Page 17180
1 of the European Community?
2 A. Yes, I am aware that Ambassador Cutileiro - the name is pronounced
3 Cutileiro, there is no "H" in it, by the way, for the typists, it's
4 C-U-T-I-L-E-I-R-O -- yes, I've previously testified that Lord Carrington
5 asked Ambassador Cutileiro to take over the Bosnian portfolio.
6 Q. Do you remember that in the resolution of the Security Council by
7 which the UN forces were established, called UNPROFOR, that it was
8 emphasised that in this way they were in no way pre-empting a political
9 solution to the situation in Yugoslavia?
10 A. Yes, and that is precisely one of the reasons why Secretary Vance
11 and I never refer to it as the Vance Plan or the Vance Peace Plan, because
12 it was not a peace plan. Thank you for quoting that first paragraph. We
13 said explicitly it was an interim solution to keep the peace on the
14 ground. The political solution was in the hands of Lord Carrington and
15 the EC conference on Yugoslavia.
16 Q. All right, Mr. Okun. At the time, the zones under UN protection
17 were established. I hope that's not contested.
18 A. Of course not. That was the purpose of the plan. And the plan
19 involved the creation of the four UN protected areas, the UNPAs. Two were
20 contiguous, so occasionally you'll see references to three areas. One was
21 Eastern Slavonia, one was Western Slavonia. The two contiguous ones were
22 in the Krajina, the Vojna Krajina. But while they were contiguous, they
23 were divided into two areas for administrative purposes. So there were
24 four UN protected areas, but if you look at a map, you see three.
25 Q. That's a well-known thing, Mr. Okun. The zones were established.
Page 17181
1 Now, my question to you is this: Do you remember that in addition
2 to the fact that these areas under UN protection were established, several
3 months later or, rather, on the 21st of June, 1992, the Croatian armed
4 forces launched an attack on part of the territory in the areas under UN
5 protection? Just give me a yes or no answer, please, because we have to
6 hurry through this now.
7 A. I am aware that the Serb forces never demilitarised inside the
8 UNPAs as they were committed to do so under the terms -- I'm sorry,
9 Mr. Milosevic --
10 Q. Mr. Okun --
11 A. -- I have the floor. I am aware that the Serb forces never
12 demilitarised, that the JNA gave its equipment to the Serb police. This
13 was a violation, and we dealt with it and were worried, very concerned.
14 We dealt with it throughout that period and were very concerned with it.
15 So it was not surprising that there were acts of random and occasional
16 violence also inside the UN protected areas. There were very few,
17 however. The principal problem for General Nambiar in the UN protected
18 areas was the refusal of the Serbs to demilitarise as they had promised.
19 Q. I understand your endeavour to minimise this, Mr. Okun, but the
20 UNPAs, the zones under UN protection, the attack on the Miljevac plateau,
21 which is on the map within that ink stain as you called it at the time,
22 under UN protection - I think you referred to them as ink spots or stains
23 on the map - that with the attack on the Miljevac plateau in June 1992,
24 Croatian violated that agreement. Is that so or is it not, Mr. Okun?
25 A. What is so is that the Serb forces in the UNPAs never
Page 17182
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Page 17183
1 demilitarised. What is true is that the JNA did not immediately withdraw
2 from Croatia as they had promised. They did not leave finally until
3 October 1992, when they left the Prevlaka peninsula. The peacekeeping
4 resolution was passed in February 1992, and they agreed to immediate
5 withdrawal. If you wish to, Mr. President, I can give you many other
6 examples of non-compliance by the JNA and the Serb side, but I understand
7 you wish to move along, so I will stop.
8 Q. The point here is just one, whether the zone under UN protection
9 was attacked or not. If your answer to that is that from the areas under
10 UN protection some Serb forces attacked territories outside the UNPAs,
11 then you would be correct. But that did not happen. What -- it was
12 attacked by the Croatian armed forces, that is to say the UNPAs were
13 attacked by the Croatian armed forces. And my question for you was: Did
14 you consider this a violation of the decision reached, in the areas under
15 protection or not?
16 A. I'm not aware of any attack by the Croatian forces of any
17 significance on the UNPAs.
18 Q. Very well. As you say so. If you say you don't know, then I'm
19 not going to pursue the point.
20 You don't, of course, know that it was the military attache in
21 Washington who was held responsible for that Serb massacre.
22 I'm just going to ask you this: As the Croatian press, on the 3rd
23 of December, it says "Studeni" here, the Croatian term, I'm not sure what
24 month that is but it is a winter month, in 2001, speaks about that. So
25 November. It goes on to enumerate names, not to waste time, and then it
Page 17184
1 says, "Just some of them who could have been responsible for the crimes
2 committed against the Serbs at the Miljevac plateau." So that is --
3 JUDGE MAY: I'm going to stop you. There's no point reading out
4 to this witness a list of names.
5 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] It says so in the Croatian press.
6 That's what I'm quoting from. It's not --
7 JUDGE MAY: It doesn't matter. The witness can't deal with it.
8 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] All right.
9 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
10 Q. And do you remember that on the 25th of June, the presiding
11 officer of the UN Security Council for June, who was the Belgium
12 Ambassador, Paul Notre Dame, sent a sharp warning to Croatia because of
13 the attack launched by the Croatian army on Knin and Drnis? Do you at
14 least know about this sharply worded warning by the Security Council to
15 the Croatian army and do you consider this confirmation of the fact that
16 Croatia did the violating? It wasn't a caution sent out to the Republic
17 of Srpska Krajina and its leadership but to Croatia for the attack on Knin
18 and Drnis.
19 A. I think we've already established that random and occasional
20 violence continued.
21 Q. All right, then. And do you remember that on the 13th of June,
22 1992, the UN Security Council - so I'm talking about the UN Security
23 Council in its Resolution 762 - called for the government of Croatia to
24 withdraw its army from the positions it had assumed to what they were
25 before the offensive on the 22nd and to cease all hostile enemy activities
Page 17185
1 in the UNPAs or areas close to them? And they reiterated that the peace
2 plan did not have the objective of pre-empting a political solution. So
3 the fact that, as you say, you have no knowledge about that, we see here
4 in Resolution 762 of the UN Security Council --
5 JUDGE MAY: Let the witness answer.
6 THE WITNESS: Thank you, Your Honour. I did not say I had no
7 knowledge. You are referring now to an event in June 1992, and your
8 previous question, as I see on the screen, concerns the attack on the
9 Srpska Krajina and the attack on Knin and Drnis. Well, again to explain
10 for the Court, what Mr. Milosevic is referring to are the areas in
11 Bosnia-Herzegovina adjacent to the UNPAs which were in Croatia. All of
12 the UN protected areas in Croatia abutted Bosnia-Herzegovina. They were
13 on the border, all of them. The ones on the west, in the Knin area of the
14 Vojna Krajina, were particularly sensitive areas because they were
15 occupied, inhabited by Serbs, and the fighting just across the border in
16 Bosnia spilled over and all were concerned with that. And that is why the
17 Security Council Resolution, which President Milosevic has just cited
18 correctly, specifically mentioned "areas adjacent." That was the
19 diplomatic way of referring to Bosnia-Herzegovina.
20 Likewise, Western Slavonia abuts the border, the posavina, and
21 Eastern Slavonia.
22 So the situation in the UN protected areas in Croatia was
23 naturally affected by the fighting next door in Bosnia, and that's what
24 Mr. Milosevic is alluding to, I believe.
25 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
Page 17186
1 Q. I'm not alluding to anything, Mr. Okun. I was very precise in
2 quoting the fact that in Resolution 762, the UN Security Council was
3 calling upon the Croatian government to withdraw its army from the
4 positions that it had assumed and to cease all hostile activities in the
5 UNPAs. I didn't mention Bosnia-Herzegovina at all, nor has that anything
6 to do with Bosnia-Herzegovina.
7 A. As I've explained, the expression "in the neighbouring areas," was
8 the Security Council's locution for the fighting in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
9 Q. All right. If we're not understanding each other, then it's very
10 difficult to understand about anything else, because that's what
11 Resolution 762 states.
12 Now, as the UN Secretary-General secretary report [as
13 interpreted], to 24.600 Croatian forces on the 21st of August, that is to
14 say the last week of August, and the 13th of September killed Serb
15 civilians and violated the cease-fire. Were you aware of that? Did you
16 have any knowledge about that? And I'm quoting UN documents to you, Mr.
17 Okun.
18 A. If it's in a UN document, I assume that it happened.
19 Q. And is this contested, that Croatia during that period did not
20 have sovereignty over the territory because they were under UN authority
21 and responsibility, and at that time, the representatives of the UN called
22 upon Krajina to take steps to establish a legal, viable legal system. So
23 they were areas under UN protection. They were not under the authority of
24 Croatia. And the representatives of the United Nations asked that the
25 representatives of Krajina set up a viable legal system there.
Page 17187
1 A. Excuse me, what period are you talking about? What period does
2 this refer to?
3 Q. I'll tell you in just a moment. The 14th of September 1992.
4 A. May I answer?
5 JUDGE MAY: Yes.
6 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
7 Q. Yes, the 14th of September, 1992.
8 A. No. That statement you just made was comprehensively incorrect at
9 every point. Let me take them point by point. You say that Croatia was
10 being occupied, and it was the -- the UNPAs were not in effect on Croatia
11 territory. That's wrong. They were on Croatian territory, and from the
12 very outset it was recognised by us - by me, by Mr. Vance, others - that
13 the UNPAs were in Croatia. If you read the peacekeeping plan - I won't
14 take to the time to do it - but if you look at the concept document, you
15 look at all of the other UN documents, they always talk about the UNPAs in
16 Croatia. They don't say they're in the Krajina, they don't say they're in
17 Western Slavonia. They're in Croatia.
18 On the second point you make, namely that Croatia was some -- was
19 not an entity, let me remind the Court that Croatia was accepted and
20 admitted into the United Nations as a member state in April 1992. So it's
21 perfectly obvious that Croatia was a sovereign state.
22 Q. Well, I'm quoting the conclusions of the subcommission of General
23 Nambiar, precisely that, of that date, the 11th of September, 1992,
24 whereby the Serbs should establish a viable, legal system in the area, and
25 that's why I put it to you. So that shouldn't be in dispute. But let's
Page 17188
1 move on.
2 At the same time, Mr. Okun - and do you know about this - although
3 all these resolutions and agreements testified to no pre-emption of a
4 political solution, nonetheless the Secretary-General suddenly on the 28th
5 of September, 1992, explains in his report that the object and goal of a
6 joint commission to establish -- established by Resolution 762, the
7 establishment of Croatian power and authority in the pink zones.
8 Now, can you explain to me how we get this approach if Resolution
9 762 said there was no pre-empting of a political solution, how do we get
10 this development then?
11 A. That's quite simple to explain, if I may. As I've already
12 testified, the Conference on Yugoslavia ended its existence in August
13 1992. After that, there was no attempt to resolve or to seek a
14 comprehensive settlement for all of the former Yugoslavia. The
15 International Conference on the Former Yugoslavia, under the
16 co-chairmanship of Secretary Vance and Lord Owen, was not concerned with a
17 comprehensive settlement. It was over.
18 Therefore, local arrangements had to be made of a military nature,
19 at the military technical level, in and around the UN protected areas in
20 Croatia, and that's what Mr. Milosevic is referring to when he talks about
21 people setting up courts and movement in and out of the pink zones, that
22 sort of thing. These were local arrangements.
23 Q. Very well. Do you remember that on the 30th of September, 1992,
24 under the auspices and in the presence of the co-chairmen of the
25 Conference on Yugoslavia, Vance and Owen, the president of Yugoslavia,
Page 17189
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Page 17190
1 Dobrica Cosic, and the president of Croatia, Franjo Tudjman, in Geneva
2 signed a joint declaration dated the 6th of October, 1992, and the
3 Security Council adopted a Resolution 779, welcoming the joint declaration
4 signed by FRY and Croatia on the 30th of September?
5 A. And the question is do I recall the joint declaration? Yes, I do.
6 Q. However, a couple of months after that -- several months, not a
7 couple. On the 22nd of January, 1993, Croatia attacked the territory of
8 the Republic of Serbian Krajina in the so-called pink zones under the
9 control of the UN. That, I assume, is not disputed. I am asking you,
10 with reference to this attack, whether you remember, the attack on the
11 22nd of January, that after a closed session of the UN Security Council,
12 the president of the Security Council, Japanese Ambassador Yoshia Katana
13 [phoen], declared for the press that the Security Council, and I quote,
14 "condemns the attack of Croatian armed formations and demands that the
15 offensive be halted immediately, and that Croatian forces withdrew to
16 their initial positions," and that the Secretary-General, in those days,
17 Boutros Boutros-Ghali, expressed regret, and I quote, "Because of the
18 unilateral act on the part of the Croatian authorities which represented a
19 blow to the peace efforts of the United Nations."
20 Do you remember these reactions to what I am saying that was going
21 on? So it cannot be disputed that these things were happening --
22 JUDGE MAY: I'm stopping you. This -- this question has gone on
23 long enough, insofar as it's a question.
24 Now, Ambassador, there are, I think, three questions wrapped up
25 there. Was there an attack on 22nd of January, as alleged, on the Serbian
Page 17191
1 Krajina? Perhaps you could deal with that first and then, if you can,
2 with the alleged reactions from the Security Council.
3 THE WITNESS: Yes, Your Honour. We've discussed the pink zones.
4 I must refer to them briefly in an introductory fashion.
5 The pink zones, so-called, were a bone of contention because the
6 UN civil command never succeeded in establishing its effective control as
7 it should have inside the UN protected areas in Croatia. Part of the
8 peacekeeping plan, the so-called Vance Plan, went into effect. Part was
9 never achieved. Another part that was not achieved was the return of
10 Croatian civilians who had been expelled from those areas into the -- into
11 the zones.
12 So there was fighting in the zones and, therefore, there was
13 fighting by the Croatian army as well.
14 So with that by way of introduction, I would agree that the
15 Croatian army probably did launch this offensive or took this action, and
16 I hear the statement read by the then president of the Security Council
17 and I accept that I've heard it and I accept he made it in good faith. As
18 we've said repeatedly, there were numerous acts of random and occasional
19 violence in and around the United Nations Protected Areas in Croatia,
20 mostly but not exclusively related to the heavy fighting next door in
21 Bosnia-Herzegovina.
22 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
23 Q. These questions, Mr. Okun, have nothing to do with Bosnia and
24 Herzegovina. I mentioned the presidential statement, the statement of the
25 Secretary-General, and do you remember that a couple of days later, the UN
Page 17192
1 Security Council adopted Resolution 802 -- because none of this helped,
2 802 was adopted in which the military attack by Croatian armed forces on
3 areas under UN protection is sharply denounced, and the demand made for
4 immediate cessation of hostilities, the withdrawal of formations, et
5 cetera, et cetera. Do you remember Resolution 802?
6 A. Yes, I remember it somewhat vaguely because it was a continuation
7 of this tit-for-tat fighting in and around the UNPAs, yes.
8 Q. And do you remember that on the 27th of January, at a closed
9 session of the Security Council, a presidential announcement was adopted
10 saying that the Security Council is extremely concerned because Croatian
11 forces, in spite of sharp warnings given previously, are continuing the
12 offensive, and demands all parties to cease hostilities immediately and to
13 urgently comply with all commitments under Resolution 802?
14 A. I imagine they did make that statement.
15 JUDGE MAY: Mr. Kay, in order to try and finish this witness's
16 evidence, since he's been here for some time, I don't know whether you'd
17 be prepared to forego any cross-examination.
18 MR. KAY: I've got Mr. Groome's problem. No. My voice is
19 generally loud enough to be heard wherever I speak. I think it's far more
20 preferable for the accused to have any time that I should have. I did
21 have certain important questions or observations to ask of the witness.
22 What I would propose is that I wrote them down and, citing the sources
23 from the diaries, and submitted them to the Trial Chamber so that they
24 could see the points that I would have been making from the diaries.
25 JUDGE MAY: Yes.
Page 17193
1 MR. KAY: If that's with the approval of the Trial Chamber.
2 [Trial Chamber confers]
3 JUDGE MAY: We have to be out at 1.45. Mr. Groome, it also
4 affects you.
5 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, I have about five questions, I think
6 about five minutes' worth, and I think it would be important for me to
7 ask.
8 JUDGE MAY: Well, I don't want to keep the witness here or have
9 him come back from America, and the accused is entitled to another five
10 minutes.
11 Speaking for myself, I'd be prepared to entertain some written
12 observations. We could always send them to the witness for his written
13 answers it may be.
14 MR. GROOME: Your Honour, if I might be of assistance on that. It
15 is planned that Ambassador Okun will be testifying at another trial in the
16 summer, June or July. So that that would be another possibility, to
17 conclude the remaining 15 or so minutes when he returns on that occasion.
18 JUDGE MAY: Let's see how we get on. The accused can have the
19 last six minutes and then we'll consider the position.
20 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
21 Q. Do you remember, Mr. Okun, that on the 30th of March, 1993 the
22 Security Council adopted the Resolution 815, prolonging the mandate of
23 UNPROFOR, and on the 6th of April, several days after that, delegations of
24 the Republic of Croatia and of the Serbian Krajina met in Geneva, signed
25 an agreement on the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 802,
Page 17194
1 envisaging a cessation of hostilities, the withdrawal of the armed forces
2 of the Republic of Croatia to the line of separation prior to the outbreak
3 of hostilities on the 22nd and the right of all persons to use the
4 Maslenica bridge the airport, Zemunik, the Peruca dam and the surrounding
5 roads for peaceful purposes?
6 A. And what was the day of that agreement in Geneva, approximately?
7 Q. 6th of April, 1993.
8 A. Yes, I have it in my diary, for the benefit of the -- of all
9 present in the court. This is a meeting -- meetings on Tuesday, April 6,
10 1993, including a meeting of one hour with the Krajina Serbs, Goran
11 Hadzic, Slobodan Jarcevic, and Misa Milosevic - I believe no relationship
12 - and Dragana Milj. Yes. We met with them, and we had previously met
13 with the Croatians.
14 What is the question?
15 Q. Do you remember that finally some sort of normalisation started,
16 some signs of normalisation set in in relations between Knin and Zagreb,
17 though there was aggressive activities exclusively by the Croatian side
18 throughout, that the Serbs showed extreme restraint. Do you know that?
19 Are you aware of that, Mr. Okun?
20 A. Well, I am aware that meetings were held. I'm certainly aware,
21 they're in the diary, that I was present. Indeed, I recall in that period
22 going to Croatia myself to chair several meetings between the Serbian and
23 Croatian sides in connection with the continued fighting around the UN
24 protected areas. I can only report what I've said earlier, was that there
25 was fighting from both sides, primarily from the Serb side, because they
Page 17195
1 rejected, for example, a proposal that the Croatian Defence Minister Susak
2 made to -- for all sides to withdrawal artillery. That sort of thing
3 occurred. There was ongoing fighting, there was ongoing negotiating, and
4 we can, of course, pick out individual moments, but it's rather like
5 trying to paint a moving train. So I think it's better if we try to
6 understand this as part of a continuum rather than isolated individual
7 acts.
8 Q. Here, as I have quoted to you, there was a whole series of
9 violations of the regime prevalent in UN protected areas. Do you remember
10 that after this there was, in Geneva, the so-called Erdut agreement again
11 between the same parties?
12 A. As I've said, there was continuous fighting on both sides.
13 Q. And do you remember that instead of complying with all those
14 warnings of the Secretary-General of the UN, the president of the Security
15 Council, the relevant resolutions and their provisions, again on the 9th
16 of September, 1993, the Croatian army again attacked areas under
17 protection and captured the Serbian villages of Divoselo, Citluk, Pocitelj
18 and Gospic. This was on the 9th of September. And on the 10th of
19 September, Thorwald Stoltenberg called on the president of Croatia, Franjo
20 Tudjman, publicly to order his forces to halt attacks against territories
21 inhabited by Serbs and for them to withdraw from these three villages that
22 they had captured in Lika? Do you remember this appeal by Stoltenberg,
23 who actually succeeded Vance?
24 A. By that time, I was involved in -- primarily in Macedonia and the
25 Greek issue, but I repeat that I was aware then and now of the continued
Page 17196
1 fighting in and around the UN protected areas.
2 Q. And do you remember that on the 7th of October, 1993, the UN
3 demanded that the Croatian government provide an explanation for the
4 massacre of Serb civilians carried out by the Croatian army in the Medak
5 pocket when 70 civilians were killed and 48 went missing? They were also
6 probably killed.
7 A. There were violations of international humanitarian law throughout
8 the conflict.
9 JUDGE MAY: Yes. Your last question.
10 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
11 Q. And do you remember --
12 JUDGE MAY: Your last question, Mr. Milosevic. We've gone past
13 the time.
14 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] I'm very sorry, Mr. May. I have at
15 least another 50 questions for this witness.
16 JUDGE MAY: Well, just pick one.
17 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
18 Q. Well, if it's just one, let me just ask you this: You said that I
19 had meetings with Cyrus Vance that you did not attend. I can -- I could
20 even say many meetings with Cyrus Vance that you did not attend. Do you
21 know what Cyrus Vance and I discussed at those meetings?
22 A. Secretary Vance would normally tell me what you and he discussed
23 at those meetings.
24 THE ACCUSED: [Interpretation] So I can't ask any more questions,
25 Mr. May; is that right?
Page 17197
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Page 17198
1 JUDGE MAY: You can ask one more if you want to ask something
2 arising from that answer, yes.
3 MR. MILOSEVIC: [Interpretation]
4 Q. One thing: If he says he knows everything, then surely he
5 couldn't testify about anything that would be contrary to the aims of
6 achieving peace and the efforts that Serbia and I personally invested to
7 achieve peace in the territories of the former Yugoslavia. So did Cyrus
8 Vance ever give you any indication that would deny what I have just said,
9 that would run counter to what I have just said?
10 A. He frequently gave me more than indications, but his view: That
11 you were sometimes helpful, frequently unhelpful in the peace effort, and
12 always in charge.
13 JUDGE MAY: Very well. Ambassador, that concludes your evidence
14 for today. If it's right that you are going to be coming back to the
15 Tribunal in the summer, then it may be convenient, if you would, to come
16 to this trial and allow counsel for the amicus and for the Prosecution to
17 ask questions which I trust will take not much more than 20 minutes. If
18 you would be so good as to do that.
19 THE WITNESS: Yes, sir.
20 JUDGE MAY: Thank you very much. We will adjourn now until Monday
21 morning.
22 THE WITNESS: Judge, may I have a word? May I thank you all for
23 allowing me to be of service, and may I say that I stand at your disposal
24 if at any time in the future I can be of further assistance.
25 JUDGE MAY: Thank you.
Page 17199
1 --- Whereupon the hearing adjourned at 1.49 p.m.,
2 to be reconvened on Monday, the 3rd day of March,
3 2003, at 9.00 a.m.
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