U.N. Council Backs War Crime Trials
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UNITED NATIONS — The five permanent members of the Security Council agreed Thursday that an international court should be set up to punish war criminals in the former Yugoslav federation.
The United States, Britain, France and Russia had backed the concept but did not win China’s support until Thursday, diplomats said.
The text of a draft resolution they agreed on will ask Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali to study ways to set up the court, which would be limited to atrocities in the Yugoslav conflicts.
The draft text contained little detail on the structure or working of the court. But it said war crimes committed after Jan. 1, 1991, would be punished by the court. Diplomats said that was an arbitrary date.
Agreement on the text by the five permanent Security Council powers virtually assured passage of the resolution, which was drafted and sponsored by France.
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