NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen on Thursday welcomed the arrest of Serbian war crimes suspect Ratko Mladic, saying it offered a chance for justice to be done.

Today we have seen an important step towards a Europe that is whole, free and at peace, Rasmussen said in a statement.

I greatly welcome the news that Ratko Mladic is arrested, and that his extradition to The Hague is underway, Rasmussen stated.

Mladic played a key role in some of the darkest episodes of Balkan and European history, including the siege of Sarajevo and the massacre of thousands of Bosnian men and boys in Srebrenica in 1995.

Almost sixteen years after his indictment for genocide and other war crimes, his arrest finally offers a chance for justice to be done, Rasmussed stressed in a statement.

Mladic's arrest was also hailed by British Foreign Secretary William Hague, who said that this was a historic moment for the region, as well as by British Defense Secretary Liam Fox, who said that this was an opportunity for Serbia to close a very unfortunate chapter of its history.

Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini stated that Mladic had been a symbol of ethnic cleasing and brutal violence.

His arrest is the reward for the commitment of the international community and political determination of the democratic Serbian government and President (Boris) Tadic, Frattini added.

Former EU peace negotiator in the former Yugoslavia Lord David Owen stated for the BBC that Mladic has so far managed to avoid arrest, among other things, because he had the support of many soldiers who were under his command.

I know him very well. He is a racist, he is merciless, Owen pointed out.