[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 33, Number 11 (Monday, March 17, 1997)]
[Page 330]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Letter to Congressional Leaders Transmitting the Report on Peacekeeping 
Operations

March 10, 1997

Dear __________:

    Enclosed is a copy of the 1996 Annual Report to the Congress on 
Peacekeeping, pursuant to section 407(d) of the Foreign Relations 
Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995 (Public Law 103-236).
    Once again in 1996, multilateral peacekeeping operations proved 
their worth in helping to defuse conflict and alleviate humanitarian 
crises around the world. Our support for the United Nations and other 
peacekeeping options allows us to protect our interests before they are 
directly threatened and ensures that others share with us the risks and 
costs of maintaining stability in the post-Cold War world.
    The concerted efforts we have made over the past few years have 
brought greater discipline to peacekeeping decision-making in national 
capitals and at the United Nations. Tough questions about the mandate, 
size, cost, duration, and exit strategy for proposed missions are asked 
and answered before they are approved. Careful attention is also given 
to ensuring that those responsible for leading the mission--whether the 
United Nations, NATO, or a coalition of concerned states--are capable of 
doing the job at hand.
    I hope you will find the enclosed report a valuable and informative 
account of how the United States uses peacekeeping to promote stability 
and protect its interests. It is important that peacekeeping remain a 
viable choice when we face situations in which neither inaction nor 
unilateral American intervention is appropriate. To that end, I look 
forward to working with you on my proposal to continue our reform 
efforts at the United Nations and to pay off our peacekeeping debt.
    Sincerely,
                                            William J. Clinton

Note: Idential letters were sent to Jesse Helms, chairman, Senate 
Committee on Foreign Relations; Strom Thurmond, chairman, Senate 
Committee on Armed Services; Ted Stevens, chairman, Senate Committee on 
Appropriations; Benjamin A. Gilman, chairman, House Committee on 
International Relations; Robert L. Livingston, chairman, House Committee 
on Appropriations; and Floyd Spence, chairman, House Committee on 
National Security.