By Jim Garamone<br />American Forces Press Service<br /><br />BRUSSELS, Belgium, June 12, 2003 – Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said<br />today that American officials may stop attending NATO meetings in Belgium<br />because of a law that allows "spurious" suits accusing American leaders of war<br />crimes.<br /><br />Rumsfeld said the United States will withhold any further funding for a new<br />NATO headquarters building here until the matter is resolved. He spoke during a<br />press conference following the NATO defense ministerial.<br /><br />The problem stems from Belgium's Universal Competence Law. Under this law, U.S.<br />Central Command chief Army Gen. Tommy Franks has been charged with war crimes<br />for his actions in Operation Iraqi Freedom.<br /><br />Former President George H.W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of<br />State Colin Powell and retired Army Gen. Norman Schwartzkopf, former CENTCOM<br />commander, have also been charged for their roles in the 1991 Persian Gulf War.<br /><br />The law gives Belgian courts the power to try citizens of any nation for war<br />crimes. "These suits are absurd," Rumsfeld said. He said Franks went to great<br />lengths to spare civilian lives during the war in Iraq.<br /><br />"The point is this: By passing that law, Belgium has turned its legal system<br />into a platform for divisive, politicized lawsuits against officials of its<br />NATO allies," Rumsfeld said.<br /><br />The secretary said that it's not for outsiders to tell the Belgian government<br />what to do. "We respect their sovereignty," he said. "We respect it even though<br />Belgium appears not to respect the sovereignty of other countries."<br /><br />But, he said, Belgium must understand there are consequences. "We will have to<br />seriously consider whether we can allow senior uniformed and civilian officials<br />to come to … Brussels," he said.<br /><br />"Certainly until this matter is resolved we will have to oppose any further<br />spending for construction of the new NATO headquarters in Brussels. Until we<br />know with certainty that Belgium intends to be a hospitable place for NATO to<br />conduct its business."<br /><br />This is not the first time that U.S. officials have complained about the law.<br />Joint Chiefs chairman Air Force Gen. Richard Myers commented on the law during<br />a visit to NATO in April.<br /><br />In March, Secretary of State Colin Powell also complained about the law.<br /><br />U.S. Embassy officials said there have been discussions in the Belgium<br />government about the law and its unintended consequences.<br /><br />_______________________________________________________<br />NOTE: This is a plain text version of a web page. If your e-mail program<br />did not properly format this information, you may view the story at<br />
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