Aid talks after Milosevic drama

Milosevic supporters protested in Belgrade against his extradition

BELGRADE, Yugoslavia (CNN) -- A meeting which could clear the way for massive cash aid to Yugoslavia has begun -- hours after the country's ex-president was extradited to face war crimes charges.

A helicopter carrying Slobodan Milosevic arrived at the United Nations' war crimes tribunal building in The Hague, Netherlands, early on Friday morning.

An international donor's conference opened in Brussels on Friday, with Milosevic's extradition, two years after the charges of crimes against humanity were laid, likely to encourage donor countries to contribute more to Yugoslavia.

QUICKVOTE Will Slobodan Milosevic receive a fair trial at the U.N. War Crimes Tribunal? Yes No - he should have been tried at home View Results VIDEO CNN's Alessio Vinci reports on the Milosevic extradition (June 28) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   VIDEO Yugoslavia polarised by Milosevic debate (June 24) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   AUDIO Russian concern over extradition 1.76 MB / 170 secs AIFF or WAV sound Tribunal targeting more war crimes suspects 628 KB / 57 secs AIFF or WAV sound   RESOURCES The ICTY indictment against Slobodan Milosevic  (United Nations) War crimes tribunal: Key facts     MORE STORIES Q&A: What happens to Milosevic now?   Kostunica says extradition illegal   Handover 'great news,' says U.S.   World welcomes Milosevic handover   Djindjic gets last word   Yugoslavia: The Milosevic years   CNN's Alessio Vinci explains issues behind Yugoslavia donors' conference   U.S. pledges aid to Yugoslavia

The conference is being jointly chaired by the European Commission and the World Bank, with money raised being used to rebuild Yugoslavia's war-torn infrastructure. Milosevic's extradition had been made a condition of releasing further aid by some countries.

The conference aims to raise $1.2 billion to build up the economy of both Serbia and Montenegro. The initial funds would go to rebuilding infrastructure and paying the salaries of teachers and medical workers.

The World Bank and EU have said $3.9 billion dollars will be needed over the next four years to restructure Yugoslavia's economy and its debts.

Yugoslav Deputy Prime Minister Miroljub Labus appealed to representatives of the 30 countries present to help rebuild the country following Milosevic's extradition.

"We are appealing to donors to share with us the burden of transition," Labus said in opening remarks.

He described a nation blighted by years of economic mismanagement under Milosevic and by a series of Balkan wars which had created more than half a million refugees and displaced people.

The World Bank's Johannes Linn also appealed to the donors, saying: "The international community must provide generous and sustained assistance, including debt relief."

Milosevic, 59, was removed from prison in Yugoslavia at around 6:30 p.m. local time (1730 GMT) on Thursday, leaving Belgrade about 30 minutes later.

He was taken to the Bosnian town of Tuzla via a Serbian helicopter and transported to The Hague in the Netherlands aboard a British government plane, sources told CNN. He was taken to the tribunal jail via helicopter at 1:20 a.m local time (2320 GMT).

Borislav Milosevic, the former dictator's older brother and former Yugoslav ambassador to Russia, called the current Yugoslav government "executioners."

"I'm ashamed of my country. It's an insult to and destruction of the dignity of our people, and a loss of sovereignty," he told Associated Press Television in Moscow.

In Belgrade, about 3,000 Milosevic supporters gathered in the city's main square on Thursday evening as news of the ex-president's dramatic extradition filtered through.

Some chanted, "Uprising! Uprising!" while others attacked television crews covering their demonstration. Several people were badly beaten, Associated Press reported. About 400 Milosevic supporters rallied in the Greek port of Thessaloniki and a few hundred gathered outside the Yugoslav Embassy in Moscow.

Donor nations and top lending institutions had put the Yugoslav government on notice that it would not receive more than $1 billion in funds for much-needed reconstruction if it did not co-operate with the tribunal.

Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov expressed concern about the extradition, saying it could encourage separatism in the Balkans.

"This will without doubt play into the hands of separatists in Kosovo and Montenegro wanting to leave the (Yugoslav) federation," Ivanov said in a statement issued by his ministry.

U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, speaking to reporters during his Mideast trip, said the extradition makes it easier for the U.S. "to be more forthcoming at the donors' conference in the subsequent days and weeks."

Kostunica criticised Milosevic's extradition in a televised speech

Officials said Milosevic would undergo a medical evaluation and be held in a cell at the detention facility.

The normal procedure, the officials said, is for an indicted suspect to enter a plea at an initial appearance within four days after arriving at the tribunal.

The tribunal hailed the extradition, saying: "The transfer of Milosevic is a turning point, the beginning of a new era in the development of international criminal justice.

"The forthcoming trial is a new and irreversible step in relation to the international community's resolve to fight against impunity."

However, Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica called it "unconstitutional."

"Tonight's extradition of Milosevic cannot be considered as legal and constitutional," Kostunica said in a nationally televised address.

"Without a state of law, we will get nowhere. Now we need to face the problem of the survival of the country ... I will do all I can to keep the country together."

Milosevic was the first head of state indicted on war crimes charges and becomes the first former head of state to be transferred to The Hague for trial.

Milosevic was indicted in 1999 for the crackdown carried out by security forces in Kosovo against ethnic Albanians before NATO's air war.

He was arrested on April 1 on domestic allegations of corruption in office. He had been held in Belgrade while the allegations were investigated.

The charges of crimes against humanity include charges of murder, deportation and prosecution of people on political, racial and ethnic grounds. The maximum sentence he could receive if convicted is life in prison.

The tribunal's chief prosecutor, Carla del Ponte, has said she intends to seek additional indictments against Milosevic.

The extradition of Milosevic stalled earlier on Thursday when the Yugoslav Constitutional Court suspended a government decree allowing for Milosevic's transfer.

However, the Serbian government said the Constitutional Court's ruling was irrelevant because the government has to co-operate with international law and fulfil the extradition order issued by the tribunal.

Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic said that the ruling by the Constitutional Court was "worthless" because the justices had been appointed by Milosevic.