    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1995, Book II)]
    [December 15, 1995]
    [Pages 1890-1892]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks on Presenting the Presidential Citizens Medals
    December 15, 1995

        The President. Good afternoon. Congressman Davis, Secretary Perry,
    General Shalikashvili, Deputy Secretary Talbott, distinguished friends:
    Let me say it is a great honor to welcome the Frasure family, the Kruzel
    family, the Drew family here today.
        Yesterday in Paris I watched the Presidents of Bosnia, Croatia, and
    Serbia sign an agreement that turns their troubled region from war to
    peace. Then on behalf of our Nation, I witnessed the agreement.
        I witnessed it also in a more personal sense on behalf of three
    great Americans who could not be there: Bob Frasure, Joe Kruzel, and
    Nelson Drew. For without their efforts there would have been no
    agreement in Dayton, and no signing in Paris. The shells would still be
    falling in Sarajevo.
        When Bob, Joe, and Nelson died on Mount Igman on August 19th, they
    were serving in the greatest of all missions, working for peace and
    freedom. How I wish they could know that their efforts were destined to
    be crowned with success. I think they do.
        They knew their mission was dangerous. They talked about the risks
    the night before they set

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    out for Sarajevo. Just a few days earlier they had tried to get in by
    helicopter, but were forced back by bad weather. But because of who they
    were, they never hesitated, and the next morning they set out again.
        To the family and friends of these three good and brave men, let me
    say again, as I have said before, we will never forget them. Their
    sacrifice reminds us of the tragedy they sought to relieve and
    reinforces the urgency of the search for a solution. They worked
    together as a team, but each had unique strengths.
        Bob Frasure was a career diplomat who found the most difficult
    assignments, or perhaps it would be better to say they found him. From
    Angola to Ethiopia, to Estonia, and of course, to Bosnia, he helped to
    write some of the most dramatic chapters in the history of modern
    American foreign policy, yet he never sought the limelight for himself.
    As Secretary Christopher has said, he was a man of great accomplishment
    but little visible ego. His ingenuity and skill were matched by
    exceptional wit. His telegrams were so well written and compelling that
    they instantly became the talk of the State Department. His warmth
    touched countless colleagues and his judgment and resourcefulness
    countless lives.
        Joe Kruzel was also a man with an apparently endless sense of humor.
    Over a three-decade career of service to our Nation, he retained also
    his idealism about our goals, while leavening it with a healthy dose of
    realism about the foibles of any large bureaucratic effort. One of his
    colleagues remarked that while others were focused on day-to-day events,
    Joe's eyes were always on the horizon. He saw that an undivided
    democratic Europe was within reach, and he led the Pentagon's efforts in
    reaching out to the East to make that dream a reality. All of us,
    including myself and Bill Perry, valued his sage and firm advice. He did
    not mince words, and we all listened.
        Nelson Drew, who served on my own staff, was a rare combination of
    remarkable soldier, respected scholar, profound strategic thinker, and a
    fine human being: born to a military family, achieving an exceptional
    military career, but he made peace his calling. I remember meeting him
    for the very first time in my office this past July just after I had
    finished a call with Prime Minister Major. I asked those in the room a
    question about Bosnia, and Nelson stepped forward to answer it with his
    usual succinct and clear wisdom. He was always ready to step forward for
    peace in Bosnia.
        Bob, Joe, and Nelson devoted their lives and they gave their lives
    to achieve that goal. Now we must follow the example they set to make
    sure this peace takes hold. Nothing we can say or do can bring our
    friends back again. But by striving to seal the peace in Bosnia for
    good, we can shape a future worthy of their noble sacrifice.
        We honor their memory today and forever with the President's
    Citizens Medal.
        Commander, post the orders.

    [At this point, Lt. Comdr. John M. Richardson, USN, Naval Aide to the
    President, read the citations, and the President presented the medals.]

        The President. Let me just say in closing that all Americans,
    whether or not they knew Bob, Joe, and Nelson, have been touched by
    their service to our country. Yesterday I saw it myself in Paris and
    just last month in my trip to the United Kingdom, to Ireland, to Germany
    and Spain. From people on the streets to Presidents and Prime Ministers,
    the world is looking for our leadership for peace because they know
    America can be trusted.
        The world places that faith in our Nation because of the work of
    individual American citizens like Bob and Joe and Nelson. They embodied
    the spirit of service that sets our Nation apart. They stood for
    something larger than themselves. Like so many of their colleagues, they
    accepted hardship and the risks that go along with the job they
    embraced.
        Often they were rewarded for their efforts only by more difficult
    assignments, for our country needs its best people precisely where the
    challenges are greatest. They answered that call to duty with courage
    and conviction and grace. They understood that our leadership requires
    our involvement and our commitment, not from the sidelines but on the
    ground at the heart of events.
        These three exemplify the qualities that make our country strong: a
    faith that one person can touch the lives of many, a willingness to work
    hard for something they believed in, a generous heart and spirit. Their
    wonderful families that you have applauded so warmly today are perhaps
    the best and finest testament to the lives that they lived.
        Without pause or complaint, they took it upon themselves to bring
    the gift of peace and free-

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    dom to others around the world, not for personal ambition but solely
    because it was the right thing to do.
        Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote, ``Let him be great, and love shall
    follow him.'' Looking at the faces of Katharina Frasure and Sarah and
    Virginia, Gail Kruzel and John and Sarah, Sandy Drew and Samantha and
    Philip, and all the other family members here, we can say that love has
    truly followed these three great Americans we have honored.
        May God bless and protect their memories, their families, and the
    country they gave everything to serve.
        Thank you very much.

    Note: The President spoke at 3:24 p.m. in Room 450 of the Old Executive
    Office Building. The medals were awarded posthumously to Robert Frasure,
    Joseph J. Kruzel, and Samuel Nelson Drew, who died on August 19 when
    their military vehicle crashed en route to Sarajevo, Bosnia.