A UN war crimes tribunal has appointed a British barrister to represent Radovan Karadzic, the former Bosnian Serb leader, at his genocide trial.

The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) on Friday named Richard Harvey, a lawyer experienced in representing war crimes suspects from Kosovo at the Hague.

His appointment comes weeks after the court delayed the trial and said it would impose a legal counsel on Karadzic, who had chosen to represent himself.

The former leader, who stands accused of 11 counts of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity for his role in the 1992-95 Bosnian war, had boycotted the trial saying he needed more time to prepare his defence.

But Marko Sladojevic, one of Karadzic's advisers, told the AP news agency that the 64-year-old will not co-operate with the lawyer.

"Mr Harvey has absolutely no knowledge whatsoever about the case," he said, adding Karadzic believes he should have been allowed to make his own choice of lawyer.

"This affects his fair trial rights," he said.

Grave charges

Among the key charges Karadzic faces is one count of genocide over the massacre of Muslim men and boys at the UN-protected enclave of Srebrenica in July 1995, in which about 8,000 people died.

He also faces another genocide charge over the 44-month siege of Sarajevo.

Karadzic, who has repeatedly refused to enter pleas, has insisted that he is innocent.

His trial is expected to last for up to two years and he faces a maximum sentence of life in jail if convicted.

Harvey has previously served as defence counsel for two members of the Kosovo Liberation Army - Haradin Bala and Lahi Brahimaj, in two separate cases before the ICTY.

Bala was convicted to 13 years and Brahimaj to six years in prison for crimes in Kosovo in 1998.