KOSOVSKA MITROVICA - Acting EULEX Chief Joelle Vachter stated on Sunday that warrants have been issued for the arrest of Zubin Potok Mayor Stevan Vulovic and former mayor Slavisa Ristic.

In an interview for the Mitrovica-based Kontakt Plus radio, Vachter said that Vulovic is suspected of organising escape of several arrestees, while Ristic is charged with endangering UN and accompanying staff and a grave murder.

Vachter said that EULEX will focus its efforts on countering high-level corruption, fight against organised crime and solving war crimes cases.

At this point, we are working on some 300 high-level cases in the pre-trial proceedings and most of them were recorded to the south of the Ibar River, Vachter said and added that during the EULEX mandate so far, the mission's judges, prosecutors and investigators managed to close around 2,500 cases and around 40,000 civil lawsuits.

She underscored that EULEX does not discriminate on grounds of ethnicity when it comes to implementation of rule of law.

Vachter stated that Kosovo judges and prosecutors acting as part of the EULEX mission are investigating and discussing only the facts and evidence and not ethnicity or status. Since 2008, 481 suspects were tried before chambers featuring EULEX judges, she noted.

Asked about her expectations concerning the constitution of a special court for war crimes committed in Kosovo, Vachter replied that all she can say at the moment is that the court would be set up in keeping with the international legal standards and would employ international investigators, prosecutors and judges.

The court will act independently of the mission when trying criminal cases, Vachter noted.