I recall the Congressional Authorization listed many diverse reasons for the war. Most still seem quite valid to me as they did to 296 Congressmen and 77 Senators at the time.
Clinton's gave his reasons for the war below - I think MOST of them are valid. But I notice he expressed concern that the conflict might spread to Greece and Turkey. That seems a little bit of a stretch. Also he cited the importance of Europe as a trading partner. I don't think the Balkans are that important trade-wise, but maybe he was thinking it could spread to major trading partners like Germany and Britain - heh.
Clinton Makes Case for Kosovo Intervention
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON -- "The Kosovars said yes to peace; Serbia put 40,000 troops and 300 tanks in and around Kosovo," and that's why the United States must be part of the solution there, President Clinton said March 23.
Clinton told the American Federation of State, County and
Municipal Employees Biennial Convention that the United States
and its NATO allies are united and prepared to use force. "If
[Serb] President [Slobodan] Milosevic is not willing to make
peace, we are willing to limit his ability to make war on the
Kosovars," he said.
Clinton explained that the United States has strategic,
practical and humanitarian reasons for combating Serb aggression in Kosovo.
Strategically, the United States needs a stable, democratic and undivided Europe, he said. Economically, Europe is a major U.S. trade market. "If we have learned anything after the Cold War and our memories of World War II, it is that if our country is going to be prosperous and secure, we need a Europe that is safe, secure, free, united, a good partner," Clinton said.
He said the practical reason for solving the problem now is that ignoring it means someone will have to do it later, but at a cost of more lives and more money. "What if someone had listened to Winston Churchill and stood up to Adolf Hitler earlier?" he asked. "How many people's lives might have been saved?"
Clinton said the world should learn the lesson of NATO
intervention in Bosnia. "We learned that if you don't stand up
to brutality and the killing of innocent people, you invite the people who do it to do more of it," he said. "We learned that firmness can save lives and stop armies."
All military actions carry risks, and this one would be no
different, Clinton said. The Serbs have considerable air defense capability. "There are risks to our pilots and there are risks to people on the ground who, themselves, are innocent
bystanders," he said. "But the dangers of acting must be weighed against the dangers of inaction. If we don't do anything after all the to-and-fro that's been said here, it will be interpreted by Mr. Milosevic as a license to continue to kill."
More than 250,000 Kosovars -- 30,000 in the last eight days
alone -- have been driven from their homes because of fighting
in the southern Serbian province, Clinton said.
He said the United States must be concerned about war in Kosovo because it could easily spread. "Look at the map -- this is a conflict with no natural boundaries," he said. "If the conflict continues, it could force thousands of refugees to Albania to the south or Macedonia. Fighting could engulf those nations. It could draw in even Greece and Turkey."
Intervening now could mean peace, Clinton said. "I think
[intervening] is morally right and in the vital interest of the United States," he said. He asked the audience to support his decision and to "say a prayer for the young men and women in uniform who are going to be there to do what I as their commander-in-chief order them to do."
defense.gov |
