[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 139 (Wednesday, October 7, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S11651]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                CONCERN ABOUT THE DEVELOPMENTS IN KOSOVO

  Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, this is a letter I sent to the President 
this morning concerning Kosovo. It reads as follows:

       Dear Mr. President: I am writing because of my serious 
     concern about developments in Kosovo. With a brutality that 
     would be almost unimaginable were anyone else responsible for 
     it, Slobodan Milosevic has subjected yet another innocent 
     population to the bloody carnage of ethnic cleansing. The 
     stark depravity of his actions gravely offends the basic 
     moral values of Western civilization. Moreover, the conflict 
     in Kosovo threatens the stability of Europe, as the prospects 
     are quite real that it may eventually embroil other countries 
     in the region in a larger war. More than once, the United 
     States has warned Serbia that NATO will not tolerate its 
     continued aggression against Kosovo. Serbia has ignored our 
     warnings, thereby challenging the credibility of the United 
     States, obliging us and our NATO allies to consider using 
     military force to prevent further aggression against our 
     values and interests in Kosovo.
       Congress has reservations about such a course of action, 
     however. While I am inclined to support military action, I 
     understand the basis for my colleagues' reservations, and I 
     believe it is imperative that prior to ordering any military 
     strike on Serbia you take all necessary steps to ensure both 
     Congress and the American people that the action is 
     necessary, affordable, and designed to achieve clearly 
     defined goals.
       First, you must state clearly the American interest in 
     resolving this terrible conflict; describe in detail the 
     facts on the ground; identify all parties responsible for 
     perpetrating the terrible atrocities committed in Kosovo 
     while making clear that Serbia is indisputably the primary 
     culprit; explain how our own security is threatened by 
     Serbian aggression and justifies risking the lives of 
     American pilots, and how the use of air power can prevent 
     further aggression. You must also define for the public what 
     will constitute the operation's success so that Americans 
     know that air strikes were launched with a realistic end game 
     in mind.
       Second, you must convincingly explain to the American 
     people why it is that we should be involved in a conflict 
     that to many people seems to affect our interests indirectly, 
     and that should be resolved exclusively by those countries 
     most directly threatened by it--our European allies. As I am 
     sure you appreciate, Congress and the public's frustration 
     over Europe's lack of willingness to bear a greater share of 
     the burden for maintaining peace in their own backyard is at 
     an all time high, threatening the nation's consensus that our 
     leadership in NATO should remain a priority interest for the 
     United States. You could go a long way toward alleviating 
     that frustration by ensuring that any ground forces that 
     might ultimately be needed to keep the peace in Kosovo will 
     be provided by European countries alone.
       Third, should you order air strikes you must ensure the 
     nation that they will be of sufficient magnitude to achieve 
     their objectives. I hope you will view the following 
     criticism in the constructive spirit in which it is offered. 
     In the past, your administration has too often threatened and 
     then backed down from the use of force, or authorized cruise 
     missile strikes that amounted to little more than ineffective 
     gestures intended, I suspect, to send a message to our 
     adversaries, but because of their small scale interpreted by 
     our adversaries as a lack of resolve on the part of the 
     United States to defend our interests vigorously. Your 
     administration's failure to support UNSCOM inspectors in Iraq 
     has also greatly exacerbated our adversaries' lack of respect 
     for America's resolve.
       Finally, you should explain how you intend to find 
     additional resources to fund the operation in order to 
     alleviate well-founded Congressional anxiety regarding the 
     over-extension of U.S. military commitments at a time when 
     spending on national defense is woefully inadequate.
       Mr. President, should you convincingly address the issues I 
     have raised, which I believe you can do, I am confident you 
     will have the support of Congress and our constituents for 
     operations against Serbia. You will certainly have mine. I 
     believe there exists a clear and compelling case for such an 
     action that Americans will accept if you avoid the mistakes 
     made in the past when your administration has attempted to 
     build public support for the use of force. I urge to give 
     these concerns your most serious consideration.

                          ____________________