U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE DAILY PRESS BRIEFING (May 12, 1995)
Subject: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE DAILY PRESS BRIEFING (May 12, 1995)
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING
I N D E X
Friday, May 12, 1995
Briefer:
David Johnson
DEPARTMENT/STATEMENT
[...]
FORMER YUGOSLAVIA
Bosnia
- Update on Fighting ............................... 3
- Wounding of French Peacekeeper ................... 3-4
- Recent Remarks by A/S Holbrooke, Amb. Albright ... 3
- Dual Key Arrangement ............................. 3-4
- Report of UN Secretary General/FM Juppe Mtg. ..... 4
- Contact Group Meeting ............................ 4-5
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING
DPB #68
FRIDAY, MAY 12, 1995, 1:09 P.M.
(ON THE RECORD UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED)
[...]
Q David, what do you have on the situation in Bosnia,
particularly around Sarajevo? Are things as grim as they
are reported to be?
MR. JOHNSON: The reports that I have indicate that fighting
involving Bosnian Government, Bosnian-Croat, and Bosnian-Serb
forces continues in the Orasje pocket and Posavina in
Northeast Bosnia, and that sniping and mortar fire continue
in and around Sarajevo.
The United States Government wishes to express its sorrow and
outrage at the grave wounding of a French peacekeeper in a
sniping incident in Sarajevo yesterday. The French
contingent has sacrificed greatly in carrying out a
dangerous humanitarian and peacekeeping mission in Bosnia.
We continue to believe that UNPROFOR has done a good job
under extremely difficult circumstances.
Assistant Secretary Holbrooke spoke about air strikes in the
context yesterday of the slow but sure strangulation of
Sarajevo, a matter we have discussed in great detail in
recent days, particularly, Assistant Secretary Holbrooke and
Ambassador Albright.
Mr. Holbrooke urged the U.N. to call on NATO for assistance
to prevent that strangulation from continuing. He also said
that NATO support is vital for U.N. operations and without
it the U.N. could be driven out of Bosnia.
QQ Well, the dual key arrangement is still in effect
around Sarajevo, right?
MR. JOHNSON: That is correct.
QQ And UNPROFOR has said that they are not going to turn
their key.
MR. JOHNSON: And we have made our feelings known about that
and encouraged them to reconsider their opinion.
QQ And have they said that they would?
MR. JOHNSON: I don't have anything of a further reaction
from them on that.
QQ Is this part of the -- do you think that the dual key
is one of the things that is pushing Boutros-Ghali to call
for a relook at the policy?
MR. JOHNSON: I'll let the U.N. Secretary General's spokesman
talk about what his reasons are for calling for a review of
the policy.
Clearly the dual key approach has been a complicating factor,
although we have recognized all along that in order to
protect troops on the ground, you need to have the
cooperation and permission of their commander to do so. And
so whatever formulation may be worked out in the future,
whether it is for Bosnia or any other future mission where
the U.N. and NATO or the United States and the U.N. are
involved, would need to take account of that concrete fact,
and that is that people have to be protected who are on the
ground.
There may be other reasons for the Secretary General to want
to reconsider the issue related to various remarks others
have made about the continuity of their forces in the
region, but I'll leave that up to the U.N. to describe for
you.
QQ Have we encouraged the U.N. to review the policy?
MR. JOHNSON: I'm unaware of anything specific on that,
excepting our very public statements by our Ambassador to
the U.N. concerning their failure to call in NATO air
support in the last few days.
QDavid, do you have anything on the meeting between Boutros-
Ghali and Alain Juppe in Paris, anything regarding the
Chirac Government's policy toward retaining their troops or
removing their troops from Bosnia?
MR. JOHNSON: We have made ourselves clear on a number of
occasions in the past how much we admire the work that the
French peacekeeping contingent has been doing, and I just
said earlier today how outraged we were -- and are -- at the
sniping incident yesterday which gravely wounded a French
peacekeeper, but I think I'll leave it to Mr. Juppe's
spokesman and the U.N. spokesman to comment on U.N.-French
meetings.
Q Okay, but the French have not informed us directly as
to the results of this meeting or to the new policy of the
new French Government.
MR. JOHNSON: I'm unaware of any such conversation, and also
would note that the new French Government is still a few
days from taking office.
Q A couple of questions on --
MR. JOHNSON: Can we finish with this?
Q Do you have anything, any read-out on the Contact
Group meeting today?
MR. JOHNSON: I don't. I would note for you that Contact
Group political directors met today in Frankfurt to continue
discussions on a package which provides some sanctions
relief for Milosevic in return for his recognition of
Bosnia, and enhanced efforts to monitor the border closure
between Bosnia and Serbia. They also discussed the
precarious security situation both in Bosnia and Croatia.
Assistant Secretary Holbrooke, who is the United States'
representative at that meeting, is enroute to New York right
now, and we awaiting his return for a more detailed read-
out.
Q David, do you have any sense that Milosevic is closer
to saying yes than he has been?
MR. JOHNSON: I don't want to characterize that reaction in
light of the fact that I have --
Q There are reports that they were making progress on
working out a package with Milosevic.
MR. JOHNSON: The work is continuing. The Contact Group
having met today, though, and me not having a full read-out
on that, I think it would preclude me from trying to give
you a very helpful indication on that. We are hopeful and
we are continuing to work.
Q Are you also aware of a report from the U.N. that
some people in Bihac have been so long without food that
they were asking the U.N. for poison to put themselves out
of that misery --
MR. JOHNSON: That's a not a report that I'm familiar with,
no.
[...]
(The briefing concluded at 1:41 p.m.)
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