Declaring the military intervention in Bosnia a success, Secretary of State Warren Christopher said Saturday it is time for NATO to focus on other aspects of the Bosnia peace accords.
The 60,000 troops of the NATO-led Implementation Force "successfully implemented" not only the cease-fire but also the withdrawal of forces from the front lines, Christopher said after meeting with NATO Secretary-General Javier Solana.Now, he said, it's time to move on to civilian aspects, such as freedom of movement and rebuilding Bosnia.
Christopher is scheduled to meet the leaders of Bosnia, Serbia and Croatia on Monday in Geneva. On Sunday he will hold talks with officials from Russia, Germany, Britain and France, the other countries most directly involved in the Bosnian peace effort.
"This is one of the highest diplomatic priorities we have in 1996 - to make the Dayton accord work," said State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns.
Presidents Slobodan Milosevic of Serbia and Franjo Tudjman of Croatia will attend Monday's meeting, along with Vice President Ejup Ganic of Bosnia. They are expected to discuss the remaining foreign Muslim fighters in Bosnia and the failure of authorities to arrest war crimes suspects.
A $100-million U.S. program to train and equip the Bosnian army is on hold until Bosnia expels the foreign fighters, some of them Iranian.