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USIA - Transcript: Cohen, FYROM Minister Handziski Press Availability, 97-04-21
From: The United States Information Agency (USIA) Gopher at <gopher://gopher.usia.gov>
TRANSCRIPT: COHEN, FYROM MINISTER HANDZISKI PRESS AVAILABILITY
(Discuss UNPREDEP, other issues) (840)
Washington -- Blagoja Handziski, minister of defense of the Former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), said his country would ask the United
Nations to extend its mission (UNPREDEP - U.N. Preventive Deployment force)
beyond the May 31 expiration date.
Handziski met with Secretary of Defense William Cohen April 18. Prior to
their meeting, the two spoke at a brief press availability.
Cohen said they planned to discuss "ways we can continue our effort with
his country with our U.N. forces, where we have some 500 members of the
United States forces serving in that capacity, and we will discuss ways in
which we can hopefully continue our presence into the future and other
matters of interest on the European continent."
Handziski said his country "has been producing peace rather than conflicts
and tensions, and a large part of the credit for this goes to the United
States, a country which from the very beginning of our independence is
extending to us a sincere and principal support."
Following is a transcript of their remarks, provided by the Defense
Department:
(Begin transcript)
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
April 18, 1997
SECRETARY COHEN WELCOMES MINISTER OF DEFENSE BLAGOJA HANDZISKI, OF THE
FORMER YUGOSLAV REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA, TO THE PENTAGON
Secretary Cohen: I'm welcoming Mr. Handziski to the Pentagon. He has been
here on a number of occasions before today. We will discuss ways in which
we can continue our effort with his country with our U.N. forces, where we
have some 500 members of the United States forces serving in that capacity,
and we will discuss ways in which we can hopefully continue our presence
into the future and other matters of interest on the European continent
perhaps. So we welcome your questions.
Q: Mr. Secretary, are you disheartened by the testimony of rape and sexual
abuse coming from young female soldiers at the trial of Staff Sgt. Delmar
Simpson?
A: Well, obviously, I have to wait until the entire evidence is in, but any
time allegations of sexual misconduct on the part of our military is of
concern, but in my position I have to wait until the trial is finally
complete before making any kind of a statement. It is of a serious concern,
allegations of this nature, but we should wait until the final outcome.
Q: Mr. Secretary, what directions have you given the services regarding the
first anniversary, or rather, the anniversary of Waco and the Oklahoma City
bombings?
A: I'm sorry. What directions?
Q: What directions have you given them to observe?
A: The directions are for each commander, each facility to make a
determination as to what they believe -- he or she believes -- to be the
best force protection that's necessary for their troops, and it's an
individual matter. Each base, each facility, each commander will make that
determination. There has been no Defense-wide directive on this anniversary.
Q: Can we have a question on Macedonia, please? Gentlemen, how long should
American troops remain in Macedonia?
Minister Handziski: It's a very sensitive question, but before I try to
answer your question, let me remind you that I come from the Republic of
Macedonia, a small country situated right in the heart of the Balkans. We
succeeded to gain independence less than six years ago peacefully, and
which managed to get out from the former Yugoslav crisis without a
war.
In this turmoiled region, my country all along has been producing peace
rather than conflicts and tensions, and a large part of the credit for this
goes to the United States, a country which from the very beginning of our
independence is extending to us a sincere and principal support.
The presence of the U.N./U.S. troops in Macedonia, as a part of the
UNPREDEP, is a testimony how highly the United States regards the security
of my country. I would like to express the highest respect and gratitude of
the Macedonian people to the United Nations, to the U.S. nation, and to the
U.S. administration for this sincere contribution for the maintenance of
the peace and stability in the region.
And let me, of course, thank to Secretary Cohen that he found the time to
receive us today, and that he make it possible for us to discuss such
significant issues. One of the issues is the issue, you put it, our
bilateral relations, which our going forward by day, and especially to
discuss some of the original issues, such as policy assessment of the
Balkan situation, Macedonian vision of its role in the new Europe Atlantic
security structure, the NATO enlargement and enhanced PFP, and, of course,
your question, the most actual one, the extension of the UNPREDEP mission
in the Republic of Macedonia after the 31st of May.
Q: Should it be extended?
A: So our position is that there are a dozen of variable reasons why we, as
a domestic country, will ask the United Nations, the Security Council, to
extend the mission after the 31st of May.
Q: Thank you.
(End transcript)
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