Karadzic said he would like to defend himself throughout the trial. "I would like to defend myself before the institution just as I would like to defend myself before any national catastrophe," he said.

Karadzic said he does not have any complaint with the treat menthe received from the staff members of the court or the United Nations detention center in Scheveningen, where he is being held.

Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic stands in the court room of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia at the start of his initial appearance in The Hague July 31, 2008. Karadzic faces a UN war crimes judge for the first time to answer charges of genocide for his actions in the 1992-95 Bosnia war. [Agencies]

Judge Orie said the court is adjourned until Aug. 29, when Karadzic will be asked to enter pleas on the charges.

Karadzic was transferred to the ICTY in the early hours on Wednesday morning. He was arrested by Serbian authorities on July 21 after 12 years on the run.

Brammertz had said it will probably take months for the prosecution and the defense to get ready for Karadzic's trial.