[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1993, Book II)]
[October 7, 1993]
[Pages 1703-1706]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Address to the Nation on Somalia
October 7, 1993

    Today I want to talk with you about our Nation's military 
involvement in Somalia. A year ago, we all watched with horror as Somali 
children and their families lay dying by the tens of thousands, dying 
the slow, agonizing death of starvation, a starvation brought on not 
only by drought, but also by the anarchy that then prevailed in that 
country.
    This past weekend we all reacted with anger and horror as an armed 
Somali gang desecrated the bodies of our American soldiers and displayed 
a captured American pilot, all of them soldiers who were taking part in 
an international effort to end the starvation of the Somali people 
themselves. These tragic events raise hard questions about our effort in 
Somalia. Why are we

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still there? What are we trying to accomplish? How did a humanitarian 
mission turn violent? And when will our people come home?
    These questions deserve straight answers. Let's start by remembering 
why our troops went into Somalia in the first place. We went because 
only the United States could help stop one of the great human tragedies 
of this time. A third of a million people had died of starvation and 
disease. Twice that many more were at risk of dying. Meanwhile, tons of 
relief supplies piled up in the capital of Mogadishu because a small 
number of Somalis stopped food from reaching their own countrymen.
    Our consciences said, enough. In our Nation's best tradition, we 
took action with bipartisan support. President Bush sent in 28,000 
American troops as part of a United Nations humanitarian mission. Our 
troops created a secure environment so that food and medicine could get 
through. We saved close to one million lives. And throughout most of 
Somalia, everywhere but in Mogadishu, life began returning to normal. 
Crops are growing. Markets are reopening. So are schools and hospitals. 
Nearly a million Somalis still depend completely on relief supplies, but 
at least the starvation is gone. And none of this would have happened 
without American leadership and America's troops.
    Until June, things went well, with little violence. The United 
States reduced our troop presence from 28,000 down to less than 5,000, 
with other nations picking up where we left off. But then in June, the 
people who caused much of the problem in the beginning started attacking 
American, Pakistani, and other troops who were there just to keep the 
peace.
    Rather than participate in building the peace with others, these 
people sought to fight and to disrupt, even if it means returning 
Somalia to anarchy and mass famine. And make no mistake about it, if we 
were to leave Somalia tomorrow, other nations would leave, too. Chaos 
would resume. The relief effort would stop, and starvation soon would 
return.
    That knowledge has led us to continue our mission. It is not our job 
to rebuild Somalia's society or even to create a political process that 
can allow Somalia's clans to live and work in peace. The Somalis must do 
that for themselves. The United Nations and many African states are more 
than willing to help. But we, we in the United States must decide 
whether we will give them enough time to have a reasonable chance to 
succeed.
    We started this mission for the right reasons, and we're going to 
finish it in the right way. In a sense, we came to Somalia to rescue 
innocent people in a burning house. We've nearly put the fire out, but 
some smoldering embers remain. If we leave them now, those embers will 
reignite into flames, and people will die again. If we stay a short 
while longer and do the right things, we've got a reasonable chance of 
cooling off the embers and getting other firefighters to take our place.
    We also have to recognize that we cannot leave now and still have 
all our troops present and accounted for. And I want you to know that I 
am determined to work for the security of those Americans missing or 
held captive. Anyone holding an American right now should understand, 
above all else, that we will hold them strictly responsible for our 
soldiers' well-being. We expected them to be well-treated, and we expect 
them to be released.
    So now we face a choice. Do we leave when the job gets tough, or 
when the job is well done? Do we invite a return of mass suffering, or 
do we leave in a way that gives the Somalis a decent chance to survive?
    Recently, General Colin Powell said this about our choices in 
Somalia: ``Because things get difficult, you don't cut and run. You work 
the problem and try to find a correct solution.'' I want to bring our 
troops home from Somalia. Before the events of this week, as I said, we 
had already reduced the number of our troops there from 28,000 to less 
than 5,000. We must complete that withdrawal soon, and I will. But we 
must also leave on our terms. We must do it right. And here is what I 
intend to do.
    This past week's events make it clear that even as we prepare to 
withdraw from Somalia, we need more strength there. We need more armor, 
more air power, to ensure that our people are safe and that we can do 
our job. Today I have ordered 1,700 additional Army troops and 104 
additional armored vehicles to Somalia to protect our troops and to 
complete our mission. I've also ordered an aircraft carrier and two 
amphibious groups with 3,600 combat Marines to be stationed offshore. 
These forces will be under American command.
    Their mission, what I am asking these young Americans to do, is the 
following:
    First, they are there to protect our troops and our bases. We did 
not go to Somalia with

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a military purpose. We never wanted to kill anyone. But those who attack 
our soldiers must know they will pay a very heavy price.
    Second, they are there to keep open and secure the roads, the port, 
and the lines of communication that are essential for the United Nations 
and the relief workers to keep the flow of food and supplies and people 
moving freely throughout the country so that starvation and anarchy do 
not return.
    Third, they are there to keep the pressure on those who cut off 
relief supplies and attacked our people, not to personalize the conflict 
but to prevent a return to anarchy.
    Fourth, through their pressure and their presence, our troops will 
help to make it possible for the Somali people, working with others, to 
reach agreements among themselves so that they can solve their problems 
and survive when we leave. That is our mission.
    I am proposing this plan because it will let us finish leaving 
Somalia on our own terms and without destroying all that two 
administrations have accomplished there. For, if we were to leave today, 
we know what would happen. Within months, Somali children again would be 
dying in the streets. Our own credibility with friends and allies would 
be severely damaged. Our leadership in world affairs would be undermined 
at the very time when people are looking to America to help promote 
peace and freedom in the post-cold-war world. And all around the world, 
aggressors, thugs, and terrorists will conclude that the best way to get 
us to change our policies is to kill our people. It would be open season 
on Americans.
    That is why I am committed to getting this job done in Somalia, not 
only quickly but also effectively. To do that, I am taking steps to 
ensure troops from other nations are ready to take the place of our own 
soldiers. We've already withdrawn some 20,000 troops, and more than that 
number have replaced them from over two dozen other nations. Now we will 
intensify efforts to have other countries deploy more troops to Somalia 
to assure that security will remain when we're gone.
    And we'll complete the replacement of U.S. military logistics 
personnel with civilian contractors who can provide the same support to 
the United Nations. While we're taking military steps to protect our own 
people and to help the U.N. maintain a secure environment, we must 
pursue new diplomatic efforts to help the Somalis find a political 
solution to their problems. That is the only kind of outcome that can 
endure.
    For fundamentally, the solution to Somalia's problems is not a 
military one, it is political. Leaders of the neighboring African 
states, such as Ethiopia and Eritrea, have offered to take the lead in 
efforts to build a settlement among the Somali people that can preserve 
order and security. I have directed my representatives to pursue such 
efforts vigorously. And I've asked Ambassador Bob Oakley, who served 
effectively in two administrations as our representative in Somalia, to 
travel again to the region immediately to advance this process.
    Obviously, even then there is no guarantee that Somalia will rid 
itself of violence and suffering. But at least we will have given 
Somalia a reasonable chance. This week some 15,000 Somalis took to the 
streets to express sympathy for our losses, to thank us for our effort. 
Most Somalis are not hostile to us but grateful. And they want to use 
this opportunity to rebuild their country.
    It is my judgment and that of my military advisers that we may need 
up to 6 months to complete these steps and to conduct an orderly 
withdrawal. We'll do what we can to complete the mission before then. 
All American troops will be out of Somalia no later than March the 31st, 
except for a few hundred support personnel in noncombat roles.
    If we take these steps, if we take the time to do the job right, I 
am convinced we will have lived up to the responsibilities of American 
leadership in the world. And we will have proved that we are committed 
to addressing the new problems of a new era.
    When out troops in Somalia came under fire this last weekend, we 
witnessed a dramatic example of the heroic ethic of our American 
military. When the first Black Hawk helicopter was downed this weekend, 
the other American troops didn't retreat although they could have. Some 
90 of them formed a perimeter around the helicopter, and they held that 
ground under intensely heavy fire. They stayed with their comrades. 
That's the kind of soldiers they are. That's the kind of people we are.
    So let us finish the work we set out to do. Let us demonstrate to 
the world, as generations of Americans have done before us, that when 
Americans take on a challenge, they do the job right.

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    Let me express my thanks and my gratitude and my profound sympathy 
to the families of the young Americans who were killed in Somalia. My 
message to you is, your country is grateful, and so is the rest of the 
world, and so are the vast majority of the Somali people. Our mission 
from this day forward is to increase our strength, do our job, bring our 
soldiers out, and bring them home.
    Thank you, and God bless America.

Note: The President spoke at 5:02 p.m. from the Oval Office at the White 
House.