    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book II)]
    [December 19, 1997]
    [Pages 1811-1812]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 1811]]

    Letter to Congressional Leaders Reporting on the Deployment of Military
    Forces for Stabilization of Areas of the Former Yugoslavia
    December 19, 1997

    Dear Mr. Speaker:  (Dear Mr. President:)
        In my report to the Congress of June 20, 1997, I provided further
    information on the deployment of combat-equipped U.S. Armed Forces to
    Bosnia and other states in the region in order to participate in and
    support the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)-led Stabilization
    Force (SFOR), and on the beginning of the withdrawal of the NATO-led
    Implementation Force (IFOR), which completed its mission and transferred
    authority to the SFOR on December 20, 1996. I am providing this
    supplemental report, consistent with the War Powers Resolution, to help
    ensure that the Congress is kept fully informed on continued U.S.
    contributions in support of peacekeeping efforts in the former
    Yugoslavia.
        We continue to work in concert with others in the international
    community to encourage the parties to fulfill their commitments under
    the Dayton Peace Agreement and to build on the gains achieved over the
    last 2 years. It remains in the U.S. national interest to help bring
    peace to Bosnia, both for humanitarian reasons and to arrest the dangers
    the fighting in Bosnia represented to security and stability in Europe
    generally. Through American leadership and in conjunction with our NATO
    allies and other countries, we have seen real and continued progress
    toward sustainable peace in Bosnia. We have also made it clear to the
    former warring parties that they are ultimately responsible for
    implementing the Peace Agreement.
        The United Nations Security Council authorized member states to
    establish the follow-on force in United Nations Security Council
    Resolution 1088 of December 12, 1996. The SFOR's tasks are to deter or
    prevent a resumption of hostilities or new threats to peace, to
    consolidate IFOR's achievements and to promote a climate in which the
    civilian-led peace process can go forward. Subject to this primary
    mission, SFOR has provided support, within its capabilities, to civilian
    organizations implementing the Dayton Peace Agreement.
        During its mission. SFOR has successfully deterred the resumption of
    hostilities by patrolling the Zone of Separation, inspecting and
    monitoring heavy weapons cantonment sites, and providing support to
    civilian agencies. The SFOR has made significant achievements in
    demining, as well as major progress in efforts to restore road, rail,
    and air transportation links within Bosnia and Herzegovina. The SFOR has
    contributed to efforts to bring persons indicted for war crimes into
    custody in The Hague. The SFOR's support to civilian peace
    implementation tasks has been significant.
        United States force contribution to SFOR in Bosnia remains
    approximately 8,500. United States forces participating in SFOR are U.S.
    Army forces that were stationed in Germany and the United States. Other
    participating U.S. forces include special operations forces, airfield
    operations support forces, air forces, and reserve component personnel.
    An amphibious force is normally in strategic reserve in the
    Mediterranean Sea, and a carrier battle group remains available to
    provide support for air operations.
        All NATO nations and 20 others, including Russia and Ukraine, have
    provided troops or other support to SFOR. Most U.S. troops are assigned
    to Multinational Division, North, centered around the city of Tuzla. In
    addition, approximately 3,000 U.S. troops are deployed to Hungary,
    Croatia, Italy, and other states in the region in order to provide
    logistical and other support to SFOR. Since June 1997, U.S. forces have
    sustained a total of three fatalities, none of which was combat-related.
        A U.S. Army contingent remains deployed in the Former Yugoslav
    Republic of Macedonia as part of the United Nations Preventive
    Deployment Force (UNPREDEP). This U.N. peacekeeping force observes and
    monitors conditions along the border with the Federal Republic of
    Yugoslavia and Albania, effectively contributing to the stability of the
    region. Several U.S. Army helicopters are also deployed to provide
    support to U.S. forces and UNPREDEP as required. Most of the
    approximately 350 U.S. soldiers participating in these missions are
    assigned to the 1st Battalion, 6th Infantry, 1st Armored Division. The
    U.N. Security Council voted December 4, 1997, to authorize a final
    extension of the UNPREDEP mandate through August 31,

    [[Page 1812]]

    1998, at which time UNPREDEP will be terminated.
        A small contingent of U.S. military personnel is also serving in
    Croatia in direct support of the Transitional Administrator of the
    United Nations Transitional Administration in Eastern Slovenia (UNTAE).
    These personnel are expected to be redeployed when UNTAES's mandate
    expires on January 15, 1998, and a follow-on U.N. civilian police
    operation continues in the region.
        In order to continue the progress we have seen in the last 6 months
    and to create conditions for a self-sustaining peace, yesterday I
    announced that the United States would in principal take part in a
    security prescence in Bosnia when SFOR withdraws this summer.
        I have directed the participation of U.S. Armed Forces in these
    operations pursuant to my constitutional authority to conduct U.S.
    foreign relations and as Commander in Chief and Chief Executive, and in
    accordance with various statutory authorities. I am providing this
    report as part of my efforts to keep the Congress fully informed about
    developments in Bosnia and other states in the region. I will continue
    to consult closely with the Congress regarding our efforts to foster
    peace and stability in the former Yugoslavia.
            Sincerely,

                                                          William J. Clinton

    Note: Identical letters were sent to Newt Gingrich, Speaker of the House
    of Representatives, and Strom Thurmond, President pro tempore of the
    Senate.