Ashdown called to Milosevic trial

Ashdown will give evidence next week

THE HAGUE, Netherlands -- Bosnia's next peace envoy has been called as a witness to give evidence at the trial of Slobodan Milosevic.

U.N. prosecutors said on Monday that Paddy Ashdown, former leader of the UK's opposition Liberal Democrat Party, will be called as a prosecution witness.

Prosecutor Geoffrey Nice told the war crimes court, sitting in The Hague, in The Netherlands, Ashdown would testify next week, but gave no further details.

Milosevic has been charged with five counts of murder, deportation and persecution in the Serbian province in 1999.

VIDEO No takers so far of the U.N. offer of a huge reward for information leading to the capture of one of Bosnia's top war crimes suspects. CNN's Alessio Vinci reports (March 4) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   EXTRA INFORMATION In-Depth: Milosevic On Trial  The People vs. Milosevic    MORE STORIES • Milosevic trial splits Serb views  • Timeline: The Milosevic years  • Milosevic: Key quotes    CNN.com Europe More news  from our European edition

He faces another 61 counts of war crimes, including genocide, stemming from the Croatian and Bosnian wars between 1991 and 1995.

He has refused to enter a plea, forcing the court to enter a not guilty plea on his behalf.

Ashdown, who will be the trial's highest-profile prosecution witness yet, has said he is willing to give evidence against the former Yugoslav leader.

Milosevic has said he will seek to call his own witnesses from among Western political leaders, including former President Bill Clinton, to testify about NATO actions in the Balkans.

Ashdown is to be the new High Representative of the Peace Implementation Council, succeeding Austrian diplomat Wolfgang Petritsch, who steps down at the end of May.

The High Representative is responsible for the civilian implementation of the 1995 Dayton/Paris Peace Agreement, in particular a strong rule of law, vital economic reforms and strong democratic institutions.

The appointment requires the approval of the U.N. Security Council.

Also due to testify next week is Patrick Ball, the first expert witness to appear at the trial, prosecutor Nice told the court.

Ball, deputy director of the Science and Human Rights Program at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, has written about the flight of Albanians from Kosovo in March-May 1999.

Andras Riedlmayer, a Harvard University fine arts librarian who co-authored a survey of Kosovo's war-damaged architectural sites, is also scheduled to give evidence.

Last week, Milosevic, who is defending himself, complained to the judges about the rigorous courtroom schedule.

"You are denying me my basic human needs," he said. "You are depriving me of two hours of fresh air every day."

"Let me be quite clear I am not asking for anything here," he added. "I just want it to be known what conditions you have placed me in."