US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld threatened this month that US officials would shun Belgium unless the "absurd" law was revoked, and in the meantime suspended US funding for a new NATO headquarters outside Brussels.

But Robertson said the new-look law to emerge from revisions announced by Belgium's government on Sunday should calm tempers.

"I very much hope that it addresses the concerns that have been raised not just by the Americans but by other countries also," he told reporters after talks late Sunday with Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel.

"If it does then I think we will have avoided a major crisis," Robertson said. "So I remain hopeful, but we're still looking at all the technical details."

NATO has its civilian and European military headquarters in Belgium, which is also home to other international institutions such as the European Union.

Under the changes recommended to the Belgian parliament by Michel's government, the law would only apply to Belgians or people living in Belgium.

The indictment of a non-resident foreigner would only be possible if his or her country has no war crimes legislation or cannot guarantee a fair trial. In other words, democratic nations would be exempt.

The announcement came after unidentified plaintiffs last week sued US President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair for war crimes over the conflict in Iraq.

While the Belgian government immediately passed the cases on to US and British legal authorities, the suits proved a major embarrassment for Brussels in the wake of the dire warnings from Rumsfeld.

WAR.WIRE