[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 196 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 196

  Urging the President to call for the United Nations to resolve the 
                         crisis in Yugoslavia.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 27, 1999

 Mr. Farr of California submitted the following resolution; which was 
          referred to the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Urging the President to call for the United Nations to resolve the 
                         crisis in Yugoslavia.

    Resolved,

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

    The House of Representatives finds the following:
            (1) Yugoslav troops, under the authority of Slobodan 
        Milosevic, have engaged in a policy of ethnic cleansing 
        throughout Kosovo.
            (2) Ethnic Albanian Kosovars have been forced from their 
        homes and separated from their families, displaced, and forced 
        to leave the country.
            (3) Prior to North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) air 
        strikes, more than 2,000 ethnic Albanians were killed in 
        Kosovo.
            (4) Refugee reports estimate at least 5,000 ethnic Albanian 
        civilians have been killed by Serb forces in Kosovo between the 
        beginning of the NATO air strikes and May 18, 1999.
            (5) The fate of as many as 225,000 ethnic Albanian men in 
        Kosovo remains uncertain.
            (6) NATO has engaged in an escalating bombing of Yugoslavia 
        since March 24, 1999.
            (7) The Yugoslav Government states that over 1,000 
        civilians have been killed by the NATO bombing campaign.
            (8) NATO bombing has been successful in degrading the 
        Yugoslav military capabilities.
            (9) NATO bombing has severely damaged the Yugoslav 
        infrastructure.
            (10) NATO bombing has demoralized Yugoslav troops, large 
        numbers of which are deserting.
            (11) NATO bombing has weakened the authority of Slobodan 
        Milosevic as a national leader.
            (12) Slobodan Milosevic is coming under pressure from 
        within Yugoslavia to take action that would lead to a cessation 
        of the NATO bombing.
            (13) The United Nations is recognized as the primary 
        international forum to discuss solutions to international 
        problems or disputes.
            (14) The United States has been a member of the United 
        Nations for 54 years.
            (15) Under the United Nations Charter, the United Nations 
        Security Council has primary responsibility for maintaining 
        international peace and security.
            (16) The North Atlantic Treaty, the treaty that established 
        NATO, explicitly acknowledges that the United Nations has 
        primary responsibility for maintaining international peace and 
        security.

 SEC. 2. DECLARATION OF POLICY.

    The House of Representatives declares that--
            (1) the United States should work with the United Nations 
        as the primary conduit for a peaceful solution to the crisis in 
        Yugoslavia; and
            (2) the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) should 
        cease air strikes in Yugoslavia in order to give the United 
        Nations the necessary window of opportunity to bring peace to 
        the people of Kosovo.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES RELATING TO UNITED 
              NATIONS INVOLVEMENT IN RESOLVING THE CRISIS IN 
              YUGOSLAVIA.

    It is the sense of the House of Representatives that the President 
should engage the United Nations as an intermediary in meaningful 
negotiations between NATO and Slobodan Milosevic to--
            (1) bring an end to the NATO bombing in Yugoslavia;
            (2) end the intimidation and expulsion of the Kosovo 
        civilian population;
            (3) cease all activities of the Yugoslav military and 
        paramilitary forces in Kosovo and to withdraw those forces;
            (4) facilitate the return of refugees and displaced persons 
        to their homes; and
            (5) deploy an international peacekeeping force to ensure a 
        secure environment for the refugees and humanitarian aid.
                                 <all>