Facing worldwide opposition, the United States has retreated from its demand that American peacekeepers be permanently immune from the new war crimes tribunal. U.S. diplomats are instead proposing a yearlong ban on any investigation.
The compromise proposal made Wednesday marked a significant change in the Bush administration's campaign to shield Americans from frivolous or politically motivated prosecutions by the new International Criminal Court.
Members of the U.N. Security Council have been grappling with a U.S. threat to end U.N. peacekeeping operations, beginning with Bosnia's on July 15, if it didn't get blanket immunity. They said the latest U.S. proposal was still unsatisfactory.
Nonetheless, there was widespread relief at Washington's new willingness to negotiate.
"We have all very much welcomed the constructive approach of the U.S. at least to work with the other members," said Mauritius' U.N. Ambassador Jagdish Koonjul.
Britain's U.N. Ambassador Jeremy......
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