Croatia will ask Australia to extradite a Serb commander, now an Australian citizen, charged with war crimes committed during Croatia's 1991-95 independence war, Justice Minister Vesna Skare-Ozbold said today.
Croatia accuses Dragan Vasiljkovic of torturing and killing Croat soldiers and civilians on the rebel Serb-held territories when he commanded a Serb paramilitary unit. Vasiljkovic currently lives in Australia but also has Serbian citizenship.
"We will ask Australian authorities to extradite Vasiljkovic as he is charged with committing war crimes in Croatia," Skare-Ozbold told state radio.
She said Australia can extradite its citizens to other countries where they face legal proceedings.
"Any country which is a UN member is also under obligation to open a trial itself if it does not extradite its citizen charged with war crimes," she added.
Croatia declared independence from communist Yugoslavia in 1991, but its Serb minority, backed by Belgrade, rebelled against it and seized one third of the country by force. Croatia crushed the rebellion in two offensives in 1995.