[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1999, Book I)]
[April 23, 1999]
[Pages 607-609]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Joint Statement on Kosovo
April 23, 1999

    1. The crisis in Kosovo represents a fundamental challenge to the 
values for which NATO has stood since its foundation: democracy, human 
rights and the rule of law. It is the culmination of a deliberate policy 
of oppression, ethnic cleansing and violence pursued by the Belgrade 
regime under the direction of President Milosevic. We will not allow this campaign of terror to 
succeed. NATO is determined to prevail.
    2. NATO's military action against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 
(FRY) supports the political aims of the international community, which 
were reaffirmed in recent statements by the UN Secretary-General and the European Union: a peaceful, multi-ethnic and 
democratic Kosovo

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where all its people can live in security and enjoy universal human 
rights and freedoms on an equal basis.
    3. Our military actions are directed not at the Serb people but at 
the policies of the regime in Belgrade, which has repeatedly rejected 
all efforts to solve the crisis peacefully. President 
Milosevic must:
    --Ensure a verifiable stop to all military action and the immediate 
        ending of violence and repression in Kosovo;
    --Withdraw from Kosovo his military, police and para-military 
        forces;
    --Agree to the stationing in Kosovo of an international military 
        presence;
    --Agree to the unconditional and safe return of all refugees and 
        displaced persons, and unhindered access to them by humanitarian 
        aid organisations; and
    --Provide credible assurance of his willingness to work for the 
        establishment of a political framework agreement based on the 
        Rambouillet accords.
    4. There can be no compromise on these conditions. As long as 
Belgrade fails to meet the legitimate demands of the international 
community and continues to inflict immense human suffering, Alliance air 
operations against the Yugoslav war machine will continue. We hold 
President Milosevic and the Belgrade 
leadership responsible for the safety of all Kosovar citizens. We will 
fulfill our promise to the Kosovar people that they can return to their 
homes and live in peace and security.
    5. We are intensifying NATO's military actions to increase the 
pressure on Belgrade. Allied governments are putting in place additional 
measures to tighten the constraints on the Belgrade regime. These 
include intensified implementation of economic sanctions, and an embargo 
on petroleum products on which we welcome the EU lead. We have directed 
our Defence Ministers to determine ways that NATO can contribute to 
halting the delivery of war material including by launching maritime 
operations, taking into account the possible consequences on Montenegro.
    6. NATO is prepared to suspend its air strikes once Belgrade has 
unequivocally accepted the above mentioned conditions and demonstrably 
begun to withdraw its forces from Kosovo according to a precise and 
rapid timetable. This could follow the passage of a United Nations 
Security Council resolution, which we will seek, requiring the 
withdrawal of Serb forces and the demilitarisation of Kosovo and 
encompassing the deployment of an international military force to 
safeguard the swift return of all refugees and displaced persons as well 
as the establishment of an international provisional administration of 
Kosovo under which its people can enjoy substantial autonomy within the 
FRY. NATO remains ready to form the core of such an international 
military force. It would be multinational in character with 
contributions from non-NATO countries.
    7. Russia has a particular responsibility in the United Nations and 
an important role to play in the search for a solution to the conflict 
in Kosovo. Such a solution must be based on the conditions of the 
international community as laid out above. President 
Milosevic's offers to date do not meet 
this test. We want to work constructively with Russia, in the spirit of 
the Founding Act.
    8. The long-planned, unrestrained and continuing assault by Yugoslav 
military, police and paramilitary forces on Kosovars and the repression 
directed against other minorities of the FRY are aggravating the already 
massive humanitarian catastrophe. This threatens to destabilise the 
surrounding region.
    9. NATO, its members and its Partners have responded to the 
humanitarian emergency and are intensifying their refugee and 
humanitarian relief operations in close cooperation with the UNHCR, the 
lead agency in this field, and with other relevant organisations. We 
will continue our assistance as long as necessary. NATO forces are 
making a major contribution to this task.
    10. We pay tribute to the servicemen and women of NATO whose courage 
and dedication are ensuring the success of our military and humanitarian 
operations.
    11. Atrocities against the people of Kosovo by FRY military, police 
and paramilitary forces represent a flagrant violation of international 
law. Our governments will co-operate with the International Criminal 
Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) to support investigation of 
all those, including at the highest levels, responsible for war crimes 
and crimes against humanity. NATO will support the ICTY in its efforts 
to secure relevant information. There can be no lasting peace without 
justice.
    12. We acknowledge and welcome the courageous support that states in 
the region are providing to our efforts in Kosovo. The former

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Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Albania have played a particularly 
important role, not least in accepting hundreds of thousands of refugees 
from Kosovo. The states in the region are bearing substantial economic 
and social burdens stemming from the current conflict.
    13. We will not tolerate threats by the Belgrade regime to the 
security of its neighbours. We will respond to such challenges by 
Belgrade to its neighbours resulting from the presence of NATO forces or 
their activities on their territory during this crisis.
    14. We reaffirm our support for the territorial integrity and 
sovereignty of all countries in the region.
    15. We reaffirm our strong support for the democratically elected 
government of Montenegro. Any move by Belgrade to undermine the 
government of President Djukanovic will have 
grave consequences. FRY forces should leave the demilitarised zone of 
Prevlaka immediately.
    16. The objective of a free, prosperous, open and economically 
integrated Southeast Europe cannot be fully assured until the FRY 
embarks upon the transition to democracy. Accordingly, we express our 
support for the objective of a democratic FRY which protects the rights 
of all minorities, including those in Vojvodina and Sandjak, and promise 
to work for such change through and beyond the current conflict.
    17. It is our aim to make stability in Southeast Europe a priority 
of our transatlantic agenda. Our governments will co-operate urgently 
through NATO as well as through the OSCE, and for those of us which are 
members, the European Union, to support the nations of Southeast Europe 
in forging a better future for their region--one based upon democracy, 
justice, economic integration, and security co-operation.

Note: The joint statement was issued by the heads of state and 
government participating in the meeting of the North Atlantic Council in 
Washington, DC, on April 23 and 24. It was made available by the Office 
of the Press Secretary but was not issued as a White House press 
release. An original was not available for verification of the content 
of this joint statement.