Pavkovic, 79, was sentenced by a court in The Hague in 2009 to 22 years in prison, a verdict confirmed in 2014, for crimes against Albanians during the 1998-1999 Kosovo war, and has been serving his sentence in Finland.

He voluntarily surrendered to the court in 2005, which had sought him for his role as commander of the Yugoslav Third Army in Kosovo.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic told journalists on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York that, at his request, the government had submitted a plea for Pavkovic's release because of his "terribly severe health condition".

The Hague tribunal has not yet confirmed a decision on his release.

In May 2022, it rejected an earlier request, citing "the gravity of his crimes and the lack of rehabilitation".

Pavkovic was a close associate of nationalist strongman Slobodan Milosevic, who died in 2006 during his own war-crimes trial.

Milosevic and Serbian authorities long maintained they were legitimately fighting the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), which they branded a terrorist group.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, a move Belgrade still refuses to recognise.