[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 45 (Thursday, April 21, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: April 21, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                 THE ADMINISTRATION'S POLICY ON BOSNIA

  Mr. SMITH. Madam President, I rise today to express my firm 
opposition to the administration's current policy on Bosnia. I have 
refrained from openly criticizing the President on his handling of the 
issue previously. But with yesterday's escalation of U.S. military 
involvement, as stated in the President's press conference, I can no 
longer remain silent.
  It is time for the American people and this body to be heard on this 
issue. I was reminded of the McNamara charts and pointers as I watched 
the press conference yesterday thinking back to the days of the Vietnam 
war.
  The administration is pursuing a policy of gradualism in Bosnia that 
is a certain recipe for disaster. We have no strategic interests, no 
military interests, no economic interests in this centuries-old civil 
war. Yet, for unknown and frankly undefined reasons, the administration 
is continuing to escalate our political and military involvement. This 
must stop.
  Madam President, I understand the President's frustration with this 
difficult issue. We are all frustrated by the atrocities being 
committed day after day against civilians, especially as we watch them 
in the media accounts. But that does not mean that the United States 
should cede its sovereignty to the United Nations and allow Boutros 
Ghali to act as commander in chief of our armed forces anywhere, let 
alone in Bosnia. Our military personnel are becoming pawns in a 
diplomatic quagmire, and this is simply unacceptable.
  The reality is not every conflict or humanitarian crisis has a 
military solution. In fact, as Colin Powell has stated so eloquently, 
if force is used imprecisely or out of frustration rather than clear 
analysis, a situation can be made worse. In Bosnia, we are seeing just 
that. There are absolutely no American security interests at stake, 
none, zero. Yet out of frustration, President Clinton is putting more 
and more U.S. troops in harm's way.
  A fundamental problem here is that President Clinton does not have a 
foreign policy agenda. He has no guiding principles to govern our use 
of military force. If we are to commit American troops to conflict, it 
must be our decision, not the United Nations decision. Our national 
interests must be at stake, not those of Boutros Ghali. There must be a 
clearly defined military mission. And there must be a definition of and 
a timetable to achieve success. The American Armed Forces are a 
national treasure. They are not a law enforcement agency to be 
subcontracted out wherever and whenever the United Nations sees fit.
  (Mr. CAMPBELL assumed the chair.)
  Mr. SMITH. Mr. President, whenever the United States has deferred to 
the United Nations and chosen sides in a civil war we have paid a 
terrible price. In Lebanon, we lost 242 American soldiers to a 
terrorist attack. In Somalia, we lost 29 of our Nation's finest in 
pursuit of a worthless thug warlord. Yet President Clinton is ignoring 
these painful lessons and once again immersing the United States in a 
civil war where we have nothing to gain and everything to lose. U.S. 
forces in Bosnia are no longer seen as impartial purveyors of 
humanitarian aid, but rather now they are considered meddling 
foreigners out to advance their own agenda. This can only produce 
further reprisals against U.S. forces, our U.N. allies, and innocent 
civilians.
  The administration's policy in Bosnia, just as in Korea, Somalia, 
Haiti, and Vietnam, has been destined to fail from the start. Fifteen 
months of coddling Communist empires and talking tough without 
delivering on idle threats has left U.S. credibility diminished and our 
influence waning. The President must have the courage now to step back 
and extricate the United States from this quagmire before it is too 
late, before our stature and credibility are so in question that there 
is no viable exit strategy.
  The only reasonable strategy is for the United States to terminate 
further escalation of military involvement and to immediately lift the 
arms embargo against the Bosnian Muslims. Let those who are being 
heinously persecuted meet destiny on their terms from behind their own 
weapons, not cowering in the ruins of some pathetic unsafe haven. We 
have neither the legal nor moral authority to play policeman in this 
centuries-old civil war. Let us step back, step back now, Mr. 
President, and allow the Bosnian Muslims the dignity and capability to 
defend themselves.
  Mr. President, let me say once again, I have refrained from this 
criticism until yesterday. But the United States is about to cross a 
Rubicon from which there is no return. We saw it in Vietnam years ago. 
It is going to happen again. President Clinton has set a course for 
catastrophe. We have no strategic interests at stake, no military 
objective, no established rules of engagement, no effective command 
structure, no definition of or timetable to achieve success, and no 
consensus for support in Congress or within the American people. That 
is a recipe for disaster.
  As the father of two young sons, and an elected representative of the 
American people sworn to uphold the Constitution, I simply cannot allow 
our brave military personnel to be treated as pawns in some diplomatic 
chess game. Where the safety and security of our troops is concerned, 
there can be no compromise. American national interests must take 
precedence over multilateralism and the grand vision of the United 
Nations.
  I thank the Chair. I thank Senator Thurmond.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oregon has 4 minutes.

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