European union politics towards the institutions of international criminal justice in the context of creation of the "global legal space"

Since the 1990-2000s the European Union has been an active supporter of international criminal justice institutions both in its internal and foreign policy. EU stance and policies on the matter, though relatively consistent, have not been without controversy. The European Union insisted that Western Balkan applicant states cooperated with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and made decisions concerning their performance in accordance with the ICTY assessment. One of the controversial and well-publicized cases, however, has been the case of Ante Gotovina, a Croatian general, who was apprehended and sent over to the Hague in 2005 but later on acquitted and released. In the 2000s all states-members of the EU joined the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC). Some experts claim that this can be explained by an attempt of the European Union to assert its role internationally in contrast to the United States with its policy of non-cooperation with the ICC [Garský, 2013]. We believe, however, that EU politics towards international criminal justice bodies should be examined in the context of the «global legal space» formation, the process in which not only states take an active part, but international organizations and other actors as well. Even if the EU member states are criticized for their inconsistent approach towards the principle of universal jurisdiction and for being reluctant to apply this principle in domestic courts [Aoun, 2012], still there have been several examples of domestic cases, such as the case of a Rwandan national, Francois Bazaramba, who was tried in Finland for genocide committed in Rwanda and received a life sentence [Kimpimaki, 2011]. The normative context of late 1990s - early 2000s enabled various actors, not only states, to participate in international processes, which is especially true for international criminal justice which is still in its relatively nascent phase with the ad hoc UN tribunals being the first institutions established in the post-Nuremberg period. International criminal justice institutions, ranging from quasi-international tribunals to the permanent International Criminal Court, have become possible after the end of the Cold War. The European Union takes an active part in this global process of “legalization” of international relations, in which we witness a steady increase in the number of treaties and other multilateral arrangements [Simmons, 2009].