[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 31, Number 37 (Monday, September 18, 1995)]
[Pages 1561-1562]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks Prior to Discussions With Representatives From Greece and the 
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and an Exchange With Reporters

September 14, 1995

Normalization Agreement

    The President. First of all, let me say that I am delighted to be 
joined here by the Foreign Minister of the Former Yugoslav Republic of 
Macedonia and the Ambassador to Greece to formally congratulate these 
two countries on the agreement they signed yesterday in New York, 
agreeing to normalize their relations.
    I want to say a special word of thanks to a great American, Cy 
Vance, who is here, who represented the United Nations; and my Special 
Envoy, Matt Nimetz, for the remarkable role they played in bringing 
these two countries together.
    As you know, the United States has had troops stationed, since I 
became President, in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to try to 
help to prevent the spread of

[[Page 1562]]

the Balkan war. And for these two countries to work out their 
longstanding differences and look forward to relationships of permanent 
peace and commerce and accord with one another is an enormous step 
forward in our attempts to find a comprehensive peace in the Balkans.
    Now, I also want to tell you that we have some reason to hope that 
we are making progress, thanks to the determination of NATO and the 
United Nations, in securing Bosnian Serb compliance with the conditions 
the U.N. and NATO have set forward for the cessation of the bombing 
campaign. And we are working on that, will continue to work on it hard 
today. And obviously, if there are any developments, we will announce 
them.

Bosnia

    Q. Do you have Russian acquiescence to place troops around Sarajevo?
    The President. Well, let me say, first of all, we are working on the 
details of the agreement. When they are worked out we will then say what 
they are and answer all the questions.
    Q. But sir, is there an agreement for the Serbs to pull their 
artillery from the positions around Sarajevo?
    The President. That is what we are attempting to secure at this 
moment. We are working through that. There's been some progress in the 
last--there's been some reason to hope for progress in the last several 
hours, beginning last night our time. But we're not prepared to make a 
final announcement yet. When we are, we will, and we'll answer all the 
questions.

Medicare

    Q. The Speaker of the House today said that the Democratic position 
on Medicare is to scare 85-year-olds, and he called the party ``morally 
bankrupt.''
    The President. Well, you know, I think it's questionable to use 
words like ``morally bankrupt,'' but let's look at the facts. For 2 
years, I said the Medicare Trust Fund was in trouble, and Mr. Gingrich 
and others mocked me and denied that it was in trouble. All by 
ourselves, with no help from them, we added 3 years to the life of the 
Trust Fund. We have proposed legislation which would add 10 years to the 
life of the Trust Fund and will get Medicare out of trouble.
    I don't want to use a term like ``morally bankrupt,'' but I think it 
is morally questionable at least to propose vast Medicare cuts which 
would increase the cost of Medicare to elderly people living on under 
$24,000 a year and claim that it's going to the Trust Fund when they 
know not one red cent of the money being paid by seniors will go to the 
Trust Fund. It will go to fund a tax cut that is too big. And they 
should tell the truth to the American people that they want to charge 
the providers more money and put that in the Trust Fund. They want to 
charge the elderly people of this country more money and put that into 
the tax cut.
    Now, that is the truth. And if we're going to talk about what 
morality requires, morality requires them to tell the truth to the 
American people.

Note: The President spoke at 10:45 a.m. in the Oval Office at the White 
House. Following his remarks, the President met with Greek Ambassador to 
the United States Loukas Tsilas and Foreign Minister Stevo Crvenkovski 
of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. A tape was not available 
for verification of the content of these remarks.