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Clinton: NATO strikes will 'defuse a powder keg'

Clinton  ALSO: Operation Allied Force blasts Yugoslavia American might leads NATO operation Yugoslavs ban CNN, two other networks from transmitting from Belgrade IMAGE GALLERY: NATO strikes Yugoslavia: Day one RELATED VIDEO RELATED VIDEO President Clinton addresses the United States on Wednesday evening Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K President Clinton announces Wednesday afternoon that NATO air attacks against Serbian military targets were under way Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K Defense Secretary William Cohen and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Hugh Shelton Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K  BACKGROUND: Serbia is one of two republics within what's left of the splintered Yugoslavia. The other is Montenegro. Kosovo is a province in southern Serbia where ethnic Albanians outnumber Serbs nine to one. Most Kosovo residents favor autonomy or secession from Serbia, but Serbs consider the area vital to their national identity. More than 2,000 people have died in fighting that began last year when the government of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic began a crackdown on independence-minded ethnic Albanians. Hundreds of thousands of refugees have been left homeless. The United States and its NATO allies threatened airstrikes unless the Serbs agreed to a Kosovo peace plan that restores some self-rule for the province's ethnic Albanian majority and includes a NATO peacekeeping force. The ethnic Albanians signed such an agreement earlier this month. The proposed 20,000-member NATO peacekeeping force would include up to 4,000 U.S. troops.

Lawmakers show support for troops

March 24, 1999
Web posted at: 9:45 p.m. EST (0245 GMT)

In this story: Pentagon: Milosevic can end strikes anytime Helms calls for Milosevic's overthrow Protesters square off in New York RELATED STORIES, SITES

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Clinton took his case for U.S.-led NATO airstrikes in Yugoslavia to the American public Wednesday night, saying the strikes were necessary to "defuse a powder keg" that has engulfed Europe in war before.

"We act to protect thousands of innocent people in Kosovo from a mounting military offensive," said Clinton.

The president detailed how the Kosovars have suffered at the hands of Yugoslav forces.

"We've seen innocent people taken from their homes, forced to kneel in the dirt and sprayed by bullets," Clinton said. "Ending this tragedy is a moral imperative."

The president also outlined why sending U.S. forces to lead the NATO raids was in the best interest of the United States.

"We act to prevent a wider war, to defuse a powder keg at the heart of Europe that has exploded twice before with catastrophic results. We act to stand united with our allies for peace," he said.

However, Clinton specifically ruled out the introduction of U.S. ground forces in a combat capacity. "I don't intend to put our troops in Kosovo to fight a war," he said.

Kosovo's location, near to many allied countries such as Italy and Greece, is on a "fault line" of Europe, Asia and the Middle East, Clinton said.

It is there, he said, where major religions meet -- Islam and both Western and Orthodox Christianity.

In addition, the small countries that surround Kosovo could be destabilized by refugees trying to escape a brutal Serbian campaign of repression, he said.

That situation creates "all the ingredients for a major war," similar to that which existed before World War I and II, he said.

"Ancient grievances, struggling democracies -- and in the center of it all -- a dictator in Serbia who has done nothing since the Cold War ended but start new wars and pour gasoline on the flames of ethnic and religious division," said Clinton.

From the Oval Office, Clinton said that if Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic won't make peace, NATO "will limit his ability to make war."

Pentagon: Milosevic can end strikes anytime

Damage in Novi Sod

U.S. officials sought Wednesday to pin the blame for the military action on Milosevic.

Clinton said the Yugoslav leader violated commitments he made last fall to "stop the brutal repression in Kosovo," where ethnic Albanians are fighting for independence, and continued to send military units into the southern province.

"His forces have intensified their attacks, burning down Kosovo Albanian villages and murdering civilians," Clinton said. "As I speak, more Serb forces are moving into Kosovo and more people are fleeing their homes -- 60,000 in just the last five weeks, a quarter of a million altogether."

Defense Secretary William Cohen also said Wednesday that Milosevic could end the NATO military operation at any time by choosing the course of peace.

"In the event that he fails to exercise that option, then we would continue in our effort to deter him from aggressively attacking the Kosovar people," said Cohen. "And if that deterrence is not successful, then we will continue to damage his capability of waging that in the future."

A few hours after the NATO operation was under way Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives easily passed a resolution stating its support for the members of the armed forces who are engaged in the operation.

News Highlights: Gallery: The conflict in review News story archive Yugoslavia's Future: What's next for Yugoslavia Map: Who controls what The Peace Settlement: A guide to the peace plan Map: Serb troop withdrawal The Military Campaign: Strike damage assessment Atlas: NATO and the Balkans Background: Timeline: Trouble in the Balkans A who's who of key players Map: Kosovo and its neighbors A history of the KLA

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-California) was the lone member to vote against the measure.

The hastily drawn-up resolution states the House's "pride in members of the Armed Forces" and "recognizes their professionalism, dedication, patriotism, and courage."

During floor debate on the resolution, many members expressed reservations about U.S. commitment to the NATO operation, but all members agreed that praise and support for troops was unconditional.

Rep. Sam Gejdenson (D-Connecticut) said "it would be unthinking not to have reservations about a policy that uses force and puts our people in harm's way."

Other members pointed out the historical significance that the Balkan region has played in history. Rep. Ike Skelton (D-Missouri) asserted that "the Balkans are a tinder box ... World War I started there. There's a great deal at stake: the stability of Europe."

Rep. Henry Hyde (R-Illinois) said: "We want to tell our fighting forces in Kosovo and in Yugoslavia that we are there," while pointing out that "diplomats are fine, lawyers are great, but in the end it's the soldiers who pay."

Helms calls for Milosevic's overthrow

Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Jesse Helms (R-North Carolina) is set to introduce a bill Thursday that would call for the removal of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, according to sources.

Helms, who voted against authorizing airstrikes, will call for a change in U.S. policy, making Milosevic's removal the official goal of U.S. action in the Balkans.

The Helms bill, called the Serbian Democratization Act, would also authorize $100 million in U.S. funds to support Democratic movements inside Yugoslavia.

Co-sponsoring the bill are Sens. Joseph Lieberman (D-Connecticut), Frank Lautenberg (D-New Jersey) and Richard Lugar (R-Indiana).

Protesters square off in New York

Protesters on both sides of the issue square off across from New York's Grand Central Station

Also Wednesday, across from New York's Grand Central Station, a group of ethnic Serbs and anti-war protesters chanting "Stop the bombing, stop the war" squared off with a group of ethnic Albanian demonstrators shouting "U.S.A., U.S.A."

The two sides were separated by police officers and barricades, as well as 42nd Street. The protest, which involved about 180 people, was orderly, although at times the atmosphere between them was heated.

Correspondent Jonathan Karl, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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