[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Con. Res. 125 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

  2d Session
S. CON. RES. 125

   Expressing the opposition of Congress to any deployment of United 
  States ground forces in Kosovo, a province in southern Serbia, for 
                 peacemaking or peacekeeping purposes.


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                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

              October 8 (legislative day, October 2), 1998

   Mr. Inhofe (for himself, Mr. Lott, Mr. Helms, Mrs. Hutchison, Mr. 
   Burns, Mr. Stevens, Mr. Thomas, Mr. Hutchinson, Mr. Smith of New 
 Hampshire, Mr. Murkowski, Mr. Bennett, Mr. Allard, Mr. Campbell, Mr. 
Mack, Mr. Craig, Mr. Grams, Mr. Faircloth, Mr. Sessions, Mr. Enzi, and 
  Mr. Hatch) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
             referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

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                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
   Expressing the opposition of Congress to any deployment of United 
  States ground forces in Kosovo, a province in southern Serbia, for 
                 peacemaking or peacekeeping purposes.

Whereas Kosovo, unlike Bosnia, is a province of the sovereign nation of Serbia;
Whereas there is no vital United States national security interest at stake in 
        the current violence taking place in Kosovo;
Whereas an Act of Congress is necessary for the introduction of the Armed Forces 
        of the United States into hostilities or situations where imminent 
        involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances, 
        when such action is not required for the defense of the United States, 
        its Armed Forces, or its nationals;
Whereas President Clinton is contemplating ordering such a deployment to Kosovo 
        in the near future in conjunction with NATO;
Whereas the Secretary of Defense, William Cohen, opposes the deployment of 
        ground forces in Kosovo, as reflected in his testimony before Congress 
        on October 6, 1998;
Whereas the lessons of United States military involvement in Bosnia clearly 
        argue that the costs and duration of any such deployment for 
        peacekeeping purposes will be much heavier and much longer than 
        initially foreseen; and
Whereas the substantial drain on military readiness of a deployment in Kosovo 
        would be inconsistent with the need, recently acknowledged by the Joint 
        Chiefs of Staff, to reverse the trends which are decimating the ability 
        of the Armed Forces of the United States to carry out the basic National 
        Military Strategy of the United States: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), 
That Congress hereby expresses its opposition to any deployment of 
United States ground forces into the Serbian province of Kosovo for 
peacemaking or peacekeeping purposes.
    Sec. 2. The Secretary of the Senate shall transmit a copy of this 
concurrent resolution to the President.
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