Ratko Mladic trial will start on May 14

The trial of Ratko Mladic, the former commander of Bosnian Serb forces, is set to start on May 14, when opening statements will be presented.

The Chamber of the ICTY had announced last December that the trial might start at the end of March 2012, but this date was changed to “allow the parties time to complete any outstanding pre-trial preparations“.

“The additional time will provide the defence with extra preparation time for scheduled Prosecution witnesses and associated exhibits in the early stages of the trial”, the International Criminal Court for the former Yugoslavia, ICTY decided on Wednesday.