Remarks to the Press in Bosnia and Herzegovina

I had productive meetings with the Presidency and underscored the strong commitment of the United States to Bosnia’s continued progress in the months and years to come. I especially thanked the leadership for signing the Article 98 agreement under the International Criminal Court Statute, the Rome Statute. And I thanked them for the commitment they have made to provide explosive ordinance detection, de-mining troops to Iraq to assist the people of Iraq in helping to build their democracy there. This is an example of Bosnia’s maturity in being willing to participate in this kind of international coalition effort.

The United States believes that Bosnia’s future is to be fully integrated into Euro-Atlantic and European institutions, such as NATO and the European Union. I emphasize, however, that achieving this goal requires Bosnia’s firm commitment to political, economic and defense reforms. Though progress can be slow and frustrating and many challenges remain, it is clear that important reforms are being implemented in key areas, such as in defense and intelligence, in customs and tax structures, and in establishing the rule of law and committing themselves to ending corruption. We have also seen highly effective action against trafficking in persons. We watch these issues closely in Washington, and Bosnia deserves credit for the strides it has made.

Last month at the NATO summit in Istanbul, we and our allies welcomed some important milestones for Bosnia. The SFOR mission will conclude at the end of the year, and the European Union will mount a new military stabilization mission, operating under the Berlin Plus arrangements that provide full coordination with, and support from, NATO. NATO will have a headquarters in Sarajevo, led initially by an American general with the task of encouraging defense reform in line with NATO standards. NATO will also support counterterrorism activities and efforts to apprehend those who have been indicted for war crimes.

At Istanbul, there was real discussion on inviting Bosnia and Herzegovina to enter the Partnership for Peace in due course, as additional progress is made. But, that invitation was not forthcoming at this time; it could not be made at this time. NATO was not satisfied that Bosnia and, in particular, obstructionist elements in Republika Srpska have lived up to the commitments, the commitments made under the Dayton Accords and other international obligations to cooperate fully with The Hague Tribunal. High Representative Ashdown took decisive action in response to failure of some officials to uphold these obligations. We work closely with Lord Ashdown and we strongly support him, and I look forward to my conversations with him later this afternoon.

The United States wants to see Bosnia in Partnership for Peace, and in eventually in NATO. But the requirement to meet your commitments, Bosnia’s commitments, regarding cooperation with the Tribunal is absolutely essential. Fulfilling Bosnia’s obligations means not just saying the right words, but delivering results in bringing those indicted for war crimes to justice in The Hague, and especially that means Radovan Karadzic. I made all of these points in my meetings today and I want to thank my hosts for the opportunity to have had a good discussion with them and for their thoughtful comments which I will take back to the United States and report to President Bush on.

But, I also want to make special mention of another event. Just before this press gathering, I met not with political figures but with some of the bright young people of this country. There is impressive talent and energy just waiting to step forward. And, I look forward to seeing what these young people will achieve as they take over the leadership of this country. The United States is optimistic about the future of Bosnia; we are optimistic about Bosnia’s capacity to join in the rapid economic progress your neighbors are making. I made a promise to those young people and I emphasize again here, that the United States will remain fully engaged with Bosnia as it undertakes the difficult but necessary reforms that lead to membership in the European Union and in NATO. The United States remains committed to helping Bosnia find its place in a Europe that is whole, free, and at peace. With that I’ll be glad to take your questions. Thank you.

MR. BOUCHER: We’ll start with Mr. Gedda down here.

QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, there have been predictions over the past six weeks that folks are closing in on Radovan Karadzic, and there’s reason for optimism more than before that he might be detained. Do you have an assessment as to where that situation stands?

SECRETARY POWELL: I really don’t. I know that the hunt continues. There have been some encouraging signs, but I will not be happy until I see him, and Mr. Mladic and others, actually standing before the bar of justice in The Hague.

MR. BOUCHER: Let’s go over here.

QUESTION: Is there any deadline for apprehending Karadzic and Mladic?

SECRETARY POWELL: No deadline. We want it as soon as possible. I wish it had been done years ago, and I hope that those that who may be harboring these individuals realize that the future of their country is being held at risk, by allowing these individuals to remain free. They are answerable to the people of Bosnia, and they are answerable to the international community for the crimes they have committed. Criminals should not escape justice. And unfortunately, those harboring these individuals make it more difficult for Bosnia to undertake the kind of reforms that it needs or to get the additional assistance that it requires from the international community, and which the international community wishes to provide. It keeps obstacles in the way of Bosnia’s full integration into institutions such as Partnership for Peace, leading to NATO membership and into the European Union. So, I hope they will be apprehended as soon as possible and it should’ve happened years ago.

MR. BOUCHER: Okay, Tammy Kupperman down here.

QUESTION: Could I ask for your comment on the attacks in Tashkent yesterday? Do you have any sense of who’s behind it and does this represent an escalation, going after both U.S. and Israeli targets in a country that we haven’t been attacked in before, to my knowledge?

SECRETARY POWELL: There have been some initial indications from the Government of Uzbekistan as to responsible individuals. But, I’d rather it come from them. I can’t confirm the initial reports that I’ve heard. We condemn this kind of terrorism. Innocent people have lost their lives. We cannot, in any way, excuse this kind of action. And I’m sure that the Uzbekistani authorities will do everything they can to bring these individuals to justice. Unfortunately, Uzbekistan has been subjected to these kinds of attacks in the past, and I know that their leadership is firmly committed to dealing with terrorism and Uzbekistan has been a good partner with the United States in the global war against terrorism.

MR. BOUCHER: The gentleman in the back.

QUESTION: Mr. Powell, high-ranking U.S. military official in Brussels said earlier this month that the U.S. won’t withdraw its military presence from Bosnia because of the threat of Islamic radicalism. Is this the only reason not to withdraw your troops from here and how big is the threat to American interests, to Europe, and Bosnian people themselves?

SECRETARY POWELL: We intend to remain here as long as our presence is needed. As you know, SFOR will be going out of existence and the mission will be given to EUFOR at the end of the year. But a NATO contingent will remain, to, as I mentioned, work on defense reform, work on bringing individuals to justice, to assist Bosnian authorities and to assist Bosnian authorities in counterterroristactivities.

There will be an American Brigadier General who will be here heading up that NATO effort. We are confident that we can continue this mission in safety and with the support of the Bosnian government. And so, we remain committed. And I said to the Presidency earlier today, we remain committed to Bosnia politically, economically, with respect to reforms, with respect to our participation in NATO, as NATO does its jobstanding alongside now EUFOR, which will have the major responsibilities that used to belong to SFOR. We’re in it for the long haul. We believe that our assistance is welcomed by Bosnia and there’s much we can do together. We view Bosnia as a friend, and we want to do everything we can to help that friend.

MR. BOUCHER: Okay, let’s try the lady in pink.

QUESTION: Could you please comment on the statements of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon the other day, that the United States supports the Israeli policy, particularly the Israeli nuclear policy in the Middle East? Thank you.

SECRETARY POWELL: I don’t think we have made any statements with respect to anything having to do with nuclear weapons in that part of the world, especially Israel. It’s for the Israeli Government to speak to. We have not commented on it.

With respect to Israeli policies: one, policy that we are supporting at the moment has to do with the proposal from Prime Minister Sharon to disengage from Gaza, to come out of all 21 Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip and to come out of four settlements in the West Bank, as the beginning of a larger West Bank withdrawal. And to do it consistent with the Road Map that was developed by the Quartet, and to work with the Quartet on this disengagement. And we are hopeful that the recent decisions made by Chairman Arafat and Prime Minister Qurei to give more authority to Prime Minister Qurei, that will allow him to put in place the political structure and the security structure that will be needed in Gaza will get us back onto the Road Map, toward the goal we all have: the President’s vision of a Palestinian state living side by side in peace with Israel.

If I could just come back to the question that was raised a moment ago by the gentleman in the red jacket, we all hope for the day when Bosnia is not in need of any troops being here from anywhere. That is our goal. We have been able to bring the size of the force down over time, transition it now over to an EUFOR. But, the day will come, with our continued assistance and help, when Bosnia will be able to manage all of these matters on its own without anyone’s presence here. That’s our goal.

MR. BOUCHER: Okay, let’s do the real lady in pink.

QUESTION: SFOR is leaving Bosnia-Herzegovina, military mission of the EU is coming in, can we say that the American military mission in BiH was successful, having in mind that definitely America will definitely not arrest Radovan Karadzic? That is can you say where the problem is? Why hasn’t Karadzic been arrested so far? Who is responsible for that?

SECRETARY POWELL: He hasn’t been arrested because he hasn’t been found. If the SFOR had known where Mr. Karadzic was, I can assure you that he would’ve been apprehended. Somebody knows where he is. There are people in the region who know where he is. And, I would hope that in the interest of peace and in the interest of helping Bosnia move forward, they would give that knowledge to those who could arrest Mr. Karadzic.

Our mission has been successful. Not just the United States mission but the SFOR mission has been successful. Bosnia-Herzegovina is moving forward; reforms are underway. You are making the necessary changes in your political and economic systems that are needed to be successful in the future, and we have been able to steadily draw down SFOR to the point where the mission can be shifted over to EUFOR, with only a small NATO component of that mission remaining. But American presence will be maintained, diplomatic presence and some military presence, although at a much lower level, for as long as it is necessary to accomplish the original mission.

MR. BOUCHER: Okay, thank you very much ladies and gentlemen.