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5 pt1 Department of State Dispatch 137 (1994)
Signing of a Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia

handle is hein.journals/dsptch11 and id is 191 raw text is: Bosnia Signing of a Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia President Clinton, Secretary Christopher, Bosnian Prime Minister Silajdzic, Croatian Foreign Minister Granic, Bosnian-Croat Representative Zubak President's Statement Statement by President Clinton, released by the White House, Office of the Press Secretary Washington, DC, March 1 1994. I warmly welcome the signing today in Washington of a framework agreement establishing a federation in the areas of the Republic of Bosnia and Herze- govina with majority Bosnian and Croat populations. This framework agreement also provides the outline of a preliminary agreement for a confed- eration with the Republic of Croatia This is a major step in the search for peace in Bosnia. I am especially pleased with the tireless efforts of my Special Envoy Charles Redman, and those of Croatian Foreign Minister Granic, Bosnian Prime Minister Silajdzic, and Mr Kresimir Zubak, rep- resenting the Bosnian-Croats. I spoke this evening with President Alija Izetbegovic of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. I congratu- lated him for his leadership and the critical role he has played in this achievement. All of us are heartened by the courage that he and the Bosnian people have shown in their struggle for peace. I also spoke with President Franjo Tudjman of Croatia to convey my admi- ration for the statesmanship he has shown in forging this agreement. I un- derscored the support of the United States for the sovereignty and integ- rity of his country. A great deal of work remains to be done to bring a full peace to Bosnia. The United States will continue to work closely with the parties through- out this process. I urge the parties to continue to demonstrate the flexibility and statesmanship that has brought them to this point. I urge them to per- severe over the coming weeks to help ensure that today's accomplishments lead to the peace so long overdue. Remarks at the Signing Remarks by Secretary Chnstopher, Prime Minister Silajdzic, Foreign Minister Granic, and Representative Zubak at the signing of the federation framework agreement and the prelimi- nary confederation agreement, Washington, DC, March 1 1994. Secretary Christopher. I am ex- tremely pleased to be present at this hopeful and significant moment in the history of the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina. There are many people to welcome here today. I see the Sec- retary of Defense and Ambassador Harriman, and I see General Shalikashvili. I'm sure I'm leaving out a number of other important American officials. I would like to welcome our many colleagues from the European Union, who have been our partners in this from the beginning and who were good enough to make their way through the snow and ice to be here tonight. I am also happy to welcome repre- sentatives from the Russian Federa- tion, from the several nations contrib- uting forces to UNPROFOR, and from the nations bordering the former Yugo- slavia-all of whom have played an important role in the process which is culminating here today. After four days of intensive discus- sions, the Bosnian Government has reached agreement with the Croatian Government and representatives of the Bosman-Croat community on a frame- work agreement for a bicommunal federation in Bosnia. This new agreement sets out the structure for a new federation of the Bosnian and Bosman-Croat commum- ties in the country of Bosnia. The agreement provides for a strong cen- tral government and substantial local self-government. Importantly, it de- fines the responsibilities of each level of government within the federation. It provides mechanisms to guarantee the human rights of all Bosnian citizens. The agreement also creates a high- level transitional committee composed of representatives of the two parties. This committee will take immediate, concrete steps to establish the new fed- eration. It will begin its work this Friday and plans to complete by the 15th of March a new constitution and an agreement on confederation be- tween Croatia and the new federation described here. The agreement shows how much can be accomplished, even after bitter years of violence, when the two sides sit down together and work as hard as these two sides have to reach an under- standing. It shows that peace is possible-but only if disputes, once in- flamed by the arguments of force, are resolved by the force of argument. I want to extend my personal con- gratulations to Prime Minister Silajdzic of Bosnia; Foreign Minister Granic of Croatia; and Mr. Zubak, representing the Bosman-Croats, for the statesman- ship that they've displayed over the last four days. I want to also thank President Izetbegovic and President Tudjman for their support and cooperation all through this endeavor. The telephone lines have been very active between Washington and Sarajevo and Zagreb to get the involvement and full agree- ment of the two leaders of the countries. President Clinton has just tele- phoned both President Izetbegovic and President Tudjman to extend his per- sonal congratulations on the agree- ment that was reached here. The people of both of these coun- ties, Bosnia and Croatia, should be proud of the efforts of the last four days here. We hope that these agree- ments will set Bosnia firmly on the road to reconciliation and encourage U.S. Department of State Dispatch March 14, 1994 VoL 5, No. 11

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