The Hague - Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic was due to appear at the war crimes tribunal in The Hague on Tuesday afternoon after announcing he would participate in a hearing about the future of his trial which he has so far refused to attend.

In a letter to presiding judge O-Gon Kwon, the 64-year old had said Sunday he would attend the so-called "status conference" in which the court is due to decide how to proceed with the trial if Karadzic continues his boycott.

Karadzic, who is representing himself in the trial at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), has demanded to be given more time to prepare his defence.

Last week, Kwon said that if Karadzic refused to attend Tuesday's hearing, the chamber might decide to continue proceedings in his absence or impose a lawyer on him for his defence.

Kwon also said the accused's right to be present at a trial is "not absolute", and Karadzic's choice not to be present could be considered the voluntary waiving of this right.

In his letter, Karadzic had also said he hoped "we will be able to find a solution which will lead not only to an expeditious trial, but a fair one".

On Monday, the prosecution completed the reading of the indictment against the former psychiatrist who faces 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including two counts of genocide.