[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 134 (Wednesday, October 1, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10267-S10268]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO GEN. JOHN SHALIKASHVILI

  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I have very mixed feelings about the 
decision announced yesterday at the White House. After nearly four 
decades of exemplary service to his adopted Nation, Gen. John 
Shalikashvili will step down as the top soldier of our Nation's 
military forces. We understand that by statute he is required to do so, 
but it does not make the reality any less of a disappointment.
  With his 39 years of distinguished service, General Shali, as he has 
come to be affectionately known, has earned

[[Page S10268]]

the respect and admiration of men and women in uniform, the Nation and 
indeed the whole world. His brand of quiet, steady leadership will be 
greatly missed.
  The General Shali story is as unusual as it is remarkable. Born in 
Warsaw, Poland, on June 27, 1936, John Shalikashvili was just 3 years 
old when Hitler's tanks rolled into his homeland. Five years later, 
Stalin's troops invaded Poland from the east. His family fled to 
Berlin, Germany, after World War II and then later moved to Peoria, IL, 
when John Shalikashvili was 16 years old. He graduated from Peoria High 
School in 1954 and received a degree in mechanical engineering from 
Bradley University 4 years later.
  General Shali began his extraordinary military career in an ordinary 
way--as a draftee in 1958.
  He graduated from officer candidate school a year later and was 
commissioned a second lieutenant in the Army. During the next 23 years, 
General Shalikashvili served in a variety of command and staff 
positions before becoming a brigadier general in 1982.
  In addition to serving on the Army staff, Shali served in Germany as 
an assistant division commander in the 1st Armored Division. In 1986, 
he was promoted to major general, and, from 1987 to 1989, he served as 
Commander of the 9th Infantry Division in Fort Lewis, WA.
  In 1989, he was promoted to lieutenant general and returned to 
Germany to serve as the deputy commander in chief of the Seventh Army. 
Then, in 1991, he was selected to command Operation Provide Comfort, 
the relief operation that returned hundreds of thousands of Kurdish 
refugees to northern Iraq.
  In 1991, he became the Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs 
of Staff and later served as the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe and 
the commander in chief of the U.S. European Command from June 1992 
until October 1993.
  On October 25, 1993, Gen. John Shalikashvili completed his rise to 
the top of the military. President Clinton appointed him to serve as 
the 13th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In that position, he 
has served as the principal military adviser to the President, the 
Secretary of Defense, and the National Security Council. During that 
tenure as Chairman, Shali was integral to the United States-led efforts 
to restore democracy in Haiti, enforce sanctions against Iraq, and keep 
peace in Bosnia.
  His guidance, his commitment, and dedication truly made a difference 
in each of these and more than 40 other missions in which our troops 
participated over the last 4 years.
  In addition to his extraordinary operational successes, the general 
has also made significant contributions to improving the Department of 
Defense. He was instrumental in adjusting our military forces to post-
cold-war realities and budget levels, always ensuring that the troops 
received the best equipment and training in the world.
  There is not a single soldier in our military today who has not 
benefited from the concern General Shali has consistently displayed for 
his or her well-being. His commitment to improving the quality of life 
for those serving in the Armed Forces has been second to none, and I am 
sure that they, like the rest of their fellow Americans, salute him.
  I think his Commander in Chief best expressed the high regard in 
which General Shali is held. In his comments at General Shali's 
farewell ceremony yesterday, President Clinton stated:

       When future students look back upon his time, they will 
     rank John Shali as among the greatest chairmen of the Joint 
     Chiefs of Staff America ever had.

  Mr. President, on behalf of the U.S. Senate, the men and women in 
uniform, and millions of his countrymen, I concur with President 
Clinton's assessment and thank General Shali for his 39 years of 
service to his country. I wish him and his wife, Joan, the very best as 
they begin a new chapter in their lives in the State of Washington.

                          ____________________