Brussels
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said this week that NATO may have to hold its meetings somewhere other than Belgium unless the country repeals a law on war crimes. The 1993 law allows charges of war crimes committed anywhere in the world to be brought in Belgian courts. Recently, a group of Iraqis brought such charges against Gen. Tommy Franks, the commander of allied forces in Iraq. That lawsuit was thrown out under a clause that allows politically motivated cases to be transferred to the defendants’ home country. But Rumsfeld said the U.S. remains concerned about frivolous prosecutions of American soldiers and officials, and will withhold funding for a new NATO building in Brussels until the law is repealed.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
