Netherlands requests talks ahead of accepting Hariri court

Daily Star - Netherlands requests talks ahead of accepting Hariri court, July 25, 2007

A spokesman for the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs said late Monday his government would discuss issues such as costs and security with the United Nations before making a formal decision regarding hosting a special court to try the suspected killers of former Premier Rafik Hariri.
The United Nations has asked the Netherlands to host the special court on Monday.
UN deputy spokeswoman Marie Okabe told a press briefing that Security General Ban Ki-Moon earlier Monday sent a letter to Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende inviting him "to consider hosting the Special Tribunal" for Lebanon.
"The secretary general hopes that the government of The Netherlands will give serious consideration to the request," she added.
Balkenende received the letter and his spokesman said he would treat the request "in a constructive manner."
The Dutch premier called for further negotiations with the world body on "prior conditions and practical arrangements" and suggested that these talks start "fairly soon," according to his spokesman Gerard van der Wulp.
"We want to maintain our position as a seat of international courts and that is why we are dealing with this request in a constructive manner," the spokesman said.
The Hague already hosts the UN war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and the International Criminal Court.
At the request of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora, the UN Security Council voted to set up the special tribunal on June 10, despite opposition from anti-government parliamentarians.
UN officials have said they expect it to take up to a year to get the court functioning after a UN-established commission completes its investigation.
UN investigators probing the killing have identified a number of people who may have been involved or known about it, their chief reported earlier this month.
Belgian prosecutor Serge Brammertz said that it believed that Hariri, a prominent critic of Syria, may have been killed because of his support for a 2004 UN resolution demanding that Syrian and other foreign troops withdraw from Lebanon.
Brammertz did not name any suspects in a report to the Security Council this month, which also expressed concern that deteriorating security in Lebanon could hamper the inquiry.
The safety of witnesses has been among the considerations in setting up the tribunal.
Brammertz is also investigating 17 other political murders or attempted murders in Lebanon.