Trump isn’t the only accused president

While the United States is understandably obsessed with judicial proceedings against Donald Trump, another president and his one-time comrades in arms is on trial in The Hague: Kosovo President Hashim Thaci. There is one common thread: Jack Smith was the prosecutor in The Hague before taking up his position in Washington to conduct investigations and possibly prosecute Trump. An expansive view of his mandate seems to be his trademark.

As the trial at the Specialist Chambers in The Hague started on Monday, Deutsche Welle‘s Elona Elezi asked some questions and I responded:

Q: Mr.Serwer, how do you consider the trial against Thaçi and other three former commanders of KLA?

A: The Specialist Chambers and Specialist Prosecutor’s Office “have jurisdiction over crimes against humanity, war crimes and other crimes under Kosovo law in relation to allegations reported in the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Report of 7 January 2011.” I am not a lawyer, but in my layman’s way of thinking the trial has departed markedly from this mandate. It seems to have forgotten the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly report.

Q: Does it diminish the role of Kosovo Liberation Army?

A: I’d say it exaggerates the role of the KLA in the abuses committed in Kosovo. The main allegations in the Council of Europe report appear to be unfounded and have been left out of the charges against the accused. The prosecutor is pursuing other, less specific, allegations against the KLA leadership quite unrelated to the CoE report.

Q: Will there be any implications if the court finds them guilty?

A: Certainly there will implications for the accused. They will be punished. But it will be a long time before there is a verdict. Their pre-trial detention seems to me unjust.

Q: In a macro perspective, does this trial affect the relationships between Kosovo and Serbia?

A: The trial is already exacerbating resentments in Kosovo, soothing consciences in Serbia, and making it harder for Pristina to normalize relations with Belgrade. That will get worse.

It was a mistake for Kosovo to agree to establish this court without a reciprocal arrangement with Serbia, that is a court with jurisdiction over “crimes against humanity, war crimes and other crimes” inside Serbia, where three American brothers were killed shortly after the 1999 war. Serbia was the main miscreant in the 1990s. The one-sided nature of the Specialist Chambers and Prosecutor’s Office prevents it from doing justice to the crimes Belgrade committed.