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U.S. troops likely to stay in Bosnia
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Copyright ) 1997 Nando.net
Copyright ) 1997 The Associated Press
WASHINGTON (December 6, 1997 7:06 p.m. EST http://www.nando.net) -- The
Clinton administration is near to concluding that U.S. troops must stay
in Bosnia beyond its self-imposed June deadline for withdrawing them, a
top administration official said Saturday.
"Within the administration, there's what I would call an emerging
consensus that a continued American leadership role and a continued
military strategy will be necessary to implement the Dayton accords,"
said Matthew Daley, the No. 2 official in charge of implementing the
1995 agreement that stopped ethnic warfare in former Yugoslavia.
"We're not going to walk away," Daley said in an interview. "I'm
confident of that."
Daley said debate continues over what the troops' role will be, pointing
to efforts to return refugees and establish democratic institutions.
Asked if troops will be needed to implement the goals, Daley said again:
"That's part of what I would call an emerging consensus."
Daley commented after he spoke at a conference to mark the second
anniversary of conclusion of the Dayton pact, which set rules for the
belligerents to follow in Bosnia and sent in NATO-led forces to enforce
them.
Last month, Robert Gelbard, the top U.S. official handling Bosnia,
testified to Congress about the need for a prolonged mission in Bosnia.
He underscored the importance of a U.S. role, but stopped short of
saying a new mission should include U.S. ground troops.
On Saturday, Daley repeated Gelbard's assertion that the United States
is looking for European allies to "share a greater part of the burden."
Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., a member of the Armed Services Committee, said
he has no doubt that the administration already has decided to keep
forces in Bosnia.
"I think the only people who don't know are the American people and the
Congress," said Roberts, who drafted a legislative compromise this fall
that requires Clinton to justify an extension of the deadline but did
not cut off funding for the mission.
Roberts agreed that war is likely to break out again if U.S. and NATO
forces leave Bosnia. But he said the American troops have no clear
mission and no certainty of how long it will take to achieve.
"What's the end goal?" he asked.
The length of the Bosnia mission has been at issue since U.S. forces
arrived there two years ago. Originally billed as a one-year mission, it
was extended until June 1998 despite congressional misgivings.
Speaking at Saturday's forum, Sen. John Glenn, D-Ohio, said genuine
discontent about the cost, now estimated at $7.4 billion, and the
mission will combine with politics in 1998, an election year.
Glenn emphasized that a decision must be made by March 1 to give the
military time to pull out by June if necessary.
"To exit right now would be a tragedy," he said. "I'm not sure that view
will prevail on Capitol Hill."
By LAURA MECKLER, The Associated Press
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