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Major, Clinton call for support on Bosnia

December 8, 1995
Web posted at: 7 p.m. EST (2400 GMT)

John Major

LONDON (CNN) -- British Prime Minister John Major opened an international conference on rebuilding Bosnia Friday, telling delegates, "Peace in Bosnia must not fail."

"We must make it literally unthinkable for anyone to drag Bosnia back to the abyss," Major told delegates from more than 50 countries gathered to examine Bosnia's political, humanitarian, and economic needs once a peace plan for the former Yugoslavia is formalized.

U.N. Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali joined Major in his plea for international support of efforts to rebuild Bosnia under a lasting peace.

"Let us join hands here in London, go to Paris, and then go to work in Bosnia and Herzegovina. There is much to be done," he said.

The delegates planned sessions Saturday to discuss the plight of Bosnian refugees, democratic elections, and the economics of reconstruction. The delegates were expected to endorse Carl Bildt, Balkans peace negotiator for the European Union and former Swedish prime minister, as high representative to serve as a liaison for military and humanitarian operations.

Holbrooke in Sarajevo to build support

Richard Holbrooke

Bildt's partner in the peace negotiations, U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke, was in Sarajevo Friday to strengthen support for the peace plan, which is to be formalized at a December 14 ceremony in Paris.

"I'm here to reassure the government and to stress to all parties the importance of the agreement," Holbrooke told reporters.

Specifically, Holbrooke planned to meet with Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic and Prime Minister Haris Silajdzic to discuss the future of Serb-held territories near Sarajevo and the expelling of non-Bosnian Muslim forces, issues which threaten to undermine the peace plan.

Bosnian Serb leaders have rejected the plan with respect to the Serb-held suburbs of Sarajevo. According to the plan, Sarajevo will be unified and governed by the Muslim-Croat Federation. Serbs living in outlying areas of the Bosnian a capital say they fear for their safety after Sarajevo falls under enemy rule.

Protest speeches

Bosnian Serbs held demonstrations to protest the agreement. Reuters reported scores of Serbs living in these areas were preparing to leave if the peace agreement were not amended to guarantee their safety.

Holbrooke rejected demands to renegotiate the Dayton agreement with respect to the Sarajevo suburbs. "The Serbs of Sarajevo should live in peace within the federation as agreed to in Dayton," he said.

Holbrooke also stressed that under the peace agreement the mujahedeen, or non-Bosnian Islamic forces who have fought for the Bosnian Muslims, must be out of Bosnia 30 days after the agreement is signed. Estimates of the number of the foreign guerrilla fighters remaining in Bosnia ranged from as few as 300 to as many as 3,000.

Debate over mission continues in U.S.

In the United States, which has already deployed 1,500 troops for the Bosnian peace mission, debate continued over whether the United States should back the peace plan with its military might.

Thursday, 184 members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent President Clinton a letter asking him not to send ground troops to Bosnia. Clinton responded to the letter Friday, saying he hoped Congress would vote to back the plan before the peace agreement is signed in Paris next week.

"It's the responsible thing to do," the president said. "The people in Europe are looking to see whether the United States will continue our 500-year partnership with Europe."

The Senate plans to vote next week on whether it will support the Bosnian mission. Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, R-Kansas, and Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, have proposed a resolution opposing the administrations plans to send soldiers to Bosnia but supporting the soldiers in their efforts. The president does not need the backing of Congress to deploy the troops, but he said Friday he hopes the Congress will back him.

Clinton gained needed support Friday from former President Jimmy Carter, who urged Congress to approve the mission.

"If America walks away from Bosnia now, the war will re-ignite and the killing will resume. The consequences will be devastating -- for the Bosnian people and for America's credibility and strength abroad," Carter said.

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