U.S. President Barack Obama sent a message from Deauville Thursday congratulating the Serbian government on the arrest of Ratko Mladic, who would now face justice.

"I applaud President Tadic and the Government of Serbia on their determined efforts to ensure that Mladic was found and that he faces justice. We look forward to his expeditious transfer to The Hague," Obama said in a written statement issued at the G8 summit in the city of Deauville, France.

Fifteen years ago, Ratko Mladic ordered the systematic execution of some 8,000 unarmed men and boys in Srebrenica. Today, he is behind bars," the statement reads.

According to Obama, the arrest of the most wanted remaining Bosnian war crimes suspect was an "important day for the families of Mladic's many victims, for Serbia, for Bosnia, for the United States, and for international justice."