Radovan Karadzic, twice indicted in 1995 by the U.N. International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, was arrested and faces charges of genocide, complicity in genocide, extermination, murder, willful killing, persecutions, deportation, inhumane acts, terror against civilians and hostage-taking.

Karadzic’s arrest finally gives some much-needed credibility to the international war crimes tribunal which has made efforts during the past years to seize fugitives and bring them to justice. The move also pushes Serbia a step forward to the European Union after a major hurdle in its path was removed. One of the main conditions set by the EU for Serbia’s admittance was to find and bring to justice war criminals such as ex-Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic.

After Karadzic, a practicing psychiatrist who was eventually nicknamed the "Butcher of Bosnia," was caught, the European Union hailed Karadzic’s arrest and described the move as a key step toward lasting reconciliation in the western Balkans and for Serbia's hopes of joining the EU.

The 63-year-old war criminal was put under arrest on Monday evening when police found him in a Belgrade suburb. The Interpol had been searching for Karadzic for more than a decade. Karadzic is responsible for organizing the deadly siege of Sarajevo and the 1995 massacre of up to 8,000 Muslims in Srebrenica. His war-related crimes made Karadzic one of the most wanted criminals on the list of the U.N. tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

"Good news! We have waited for this for 13 years. Finally. Finally. This is a very good thing for the rapprochement of Serbia with the European Union," said French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner from Brussels according to International Herald Tribune. European Commission President Manuel Barroso was also glad to hear the good news and described it as “a very positive development that will contribute to bringing justice and lasting reconciliation in the Western Balkans."

The event also had economical impact in the region. Serbia’s dinar rose the most in a month against the euro after the wartime leader was arrested. The Serbian dinar also rose against the dollar after the country’s top officials said Karadzic was handed over to the Special War Crimes Court in Belgrade.