WASHINGTON “ Congressman John W. Olver (D - 1st District) joined his colleagues today in urging President Clinton to leave all military options open to accomplish our national goals in Kosova.  Olver, and 15 other House members sent a letter to the President asking that he not preclude the use of ground troops as part of the NATO mission.  The letter states that recent attempts to increase our military presence in Kosova have shown, it takes time to put all of the necessary components in place to wage an effective war against Milosevic.  Therefore, the letter calls on the President to swiftly take all appropriate operational measures to fully prepare the US for the ground troops option. (A copy of the letter to the President is attached.)

The following is Congressman Olver°s official statement regarding military options and the situation in Kosova:

œThe NATO mission must stop the ethnic cleansing, the rape, the slaughter that make up the humanitarian catastrophe in Kosova orchestrated by Slobodan Milosevic.

œWhile the goal of the United States and our NATO partners is to disable Milosevic°s military capabilities, the true objective is to end the suffering and plight of the Kosovar Albanians.

œTherefore, NATO cannot rule out whatever option is necessary to achieve that objective.

œThe Milosevic regime is directly the cause of the humanitarian catastrophe in the former Yugoslavia.  He and his regime created 2  million refugees and 200,000 dead in Croatia and Bosnia between 1991 and 1995.

œDuring his attacks on those two members of the United Nations, his forces œethnically cleansed” -- i.e. killed or drove out all the Catholics and Muslims from the areas Milosevic intended to annex to Serbia.

œNATO did nothing for four years until all the men and boys -- 8,000 -- were systematically slaughtered in one day in the U.N. safe haven of Srbrenica when it was overrun.

œNow, it is 1999 and we are talking about Kosova.

œAs of the last official report on April 9th, 1999, Serb war crimes in Kosova “ including the summary execution of military-aged men and destruction of civilian housing “ has caused over 560,000 Kosovars to become refugees in Albania, Macedonia, and Montenegro with columns of refugees awaiting processing into Albania and Macedonia reportedly stretching back nearly 15 miles at their peak. The whereabouts and fate of at least another 700,000 Kosovars is unknown.

œNATO must continually reevaluate this situation, and plan to carry out whatever military operation is necessary to stop the genocide.”

April 15, 1999

The Honorable William J. Clinton
President of the United States
The White House
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:
 
 As the crisis in Kosova mounts and the number of refugees and victims of Slobodan Milosevic°s campaign of brutal aggression grows, we urge you to leave all military options open to accomplish our national goals.  Specifically, we ask that you not preclude the use of United States ground troops as part of the NATO mission if the airstrikes prove to be inadequate to meet our aims.  It may be that only NATO ground forces will be able to create a secure environment for the return of the refugees and to stop Milosevic's brutal abuse and murder of innocent civilians.

We further ask that you take all appropriate operational measures to fully prepare the United States armed services for the contingency of sending American ground troops to the region as part of the NATO force.  As we have seen with the introduction of the Apache helicopters into this mission, it takes time to put all of the necessary components in place to wage an effective war against Milosevic.  Acting swiftly at this critical juncture to develop an operational plan will make any future effort more productive and limit the risk of further ethnic cleansing in Kosova.

Mr. President, we appreciate your consideration and resolve, and join you in expressing our gratitude for all of the brave men and women taking part in this crucial mission.

Sincerely,

Minority Whip Rep. David Bonior, D-MI
Rep. Peter King, R-NY
Rep. Eliot Engel, D-NY
Rep. Joseph Crowley, D-NY
Rep. Steny H. Hoyer, D-MD
Rep. Gary L. Ackerman, D-NY
Rep. Marty Meehan, D-MA
Rep. John Lewis, D-GA
Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-TX
Rep. John W. Olver, D-MA
Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-NV
Rep. Dennis Moore, D-KS
Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-NY
Rep. Major R. Owens, D-NY
Rep. Joseph Hoeffel, D-PA