In addition to $1.5 billion for U.S. peacekeeping in Bosnia, the Clinton administration expects to contribute as much as $600 million to an international effort to rebuild the country if a final peace is achieved.
President Clinton spelled out this and other aspects of U.S. involvement in Bosnia in a letter to House Speaker Newt Gingrich in which he gave assurances Congress would have time to debate the matter before U.S. troops were sent.Clinton reiterated that about 20,000 U.S. troops would be needed in Bosnia to help NATO enforce a peace agreement, in addition to an unspecified number of support troops outside Bosnia.
Although the financial cost of U.S. involvement in Bosnia has not been the main point of controversy in Congress, many on Capitol Hill say U.S. interests there are not great enough to justify risking the lives of U.S. troops.
Gingrich and Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole told Clinton this week that congressional support for sending American troops to Bosnia was "virtually nil."
In his letter, dated Monday and released Tuesday, Clinton reiterated his view that the United States must take a lead role in the peace implementation force.
"I believe congressional support for U.S. participation is important and desirable, although, as has been the case with prior presidents, I must reserve my constitutional prerogatives in this area," Clinton wrote.
He said Congress would have a "timely opportunity" to act on his request for an "expression of support" for a Bosnia mission, once the parties to the negotiations now under way in Dayton, Ohio, initial a peace agreement.
He added, however, that a "small amount" of U.S. communications and other support forces would be sent early, even before Congress acted. At the Pentagon, spokesman Kenneth Bacon said Tuesday that some military equipment would be pre-positioned in the vicinity of Bosnia once the Dayton talks concluded.
Bacon said the Pentagon expects to have established a "fairly significant headquarters operation" in Bosnia within 72 hours of Clinton's order to begin deploying.