Radovan Karadzic, the former Bosnian Serb leader, made a defiant first appearance at his war crimes and genocide trial on Tuesday, insisting he needed up to 10 months more time to prepare as prosecutors asked the court to appoint a defence counsel.

Judges in the case will decide later this week how to proceed following Mr Karadzic’s refusal to attend three previous hearings in the biggest case at the UN-backed tribunal since proceedings against Slobodan Milosevic, the former Yugoslav president, who died before his own trial ended.