Bosnia after Dayton - Anthony Lake, Asst. to the President for National Security Affairs - Transcript

US Department of State Dispatch,  June 24, 1996  

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Elections are a part of the beginning, not the end of t}.e hard work required to bring democracy to Bosnia. After so much bloodshed and loss, there is no guarantee that Muslims, Croats, and Serbs will come together and state together as citizens of a shared state with a common destiny. But the whole point of Dayton is to give them the chance to try. Elections are the necessary next step along the long, difficult road to a unified, peaceful Bosnia. If we let them slip, other crucial provisions of the Dayton plan could slip. And that's a slope we don't want to be on. Thus far, we've held to Dayton with fierce determination. Now, it is our responsibility to bring that same determination to making sure the elections in Bosnia are free and fair.

As we look to the elections and beyond, it is absolutely vital that we avoid the paralysis of pessimism. That's an affliction common to just about every difficult foreign policy initiative. If we had let it overcome us in Haiti, we never would have sent our troops to pave the way for democracy's return. After all, the chorus of Chicken Littles was deafening--Port-au-Prince will burn, Aristide will never return, the elections will never be held, Aristide won't step down, and so on. Well, Haiti still has a long way to go, but we can be very proud of what we achieved. The dictators are gone, democracy is back, the flow of refugees to our shores has stopped, and the Haitian people have their best chance ever to build a decent future in freedom.

In Bosnia, it's not hard to find places we've fallen short of our goals. The pace of economic reconstruction is too slow. Not enough refugees have returned to Bosnia and too few people within Bosnia have been able to reclaim their old homes. Political reconciliation has not yet met our expectations--not just between Muslims and Serbs, but also between Muslims and Croats who have worked together as part of the Federation for two years now.

But instead of throwing up our hands in despair at the problems, we must redouble our efforts and solve them. That means seeing the elections through. But it also means making clear that our commitment to Bosnia's future extends well beyond the elections and the withdrawal of IFOR--not by acting as a guarantor, not by doing the hard work in place of the Bosnian people, but by doing our part for a lasting peace as long as they do theirs.

In the months ahead, the people of Bosnia can count on us to help them strengthen democratic institutions; to establish a stable military balance of power; to monitor the departure of foreign forces; to train a civilian police force; to help more refugees return; to secure cooperation with the War Crimes Tribunal; and to help foster economic reconstruction, growth, and prosperity. These are the building blocks of peace. As each one falls into place, the peace will become more and more secure.

That's a lot to accomplish. No one can guarantee we will succeed or that the Bosnian people will succeed. But already, in less than a year, we've changed the face of Bosnia. The war is over. The peace is just beginning. If we have faith in its promise while fearing its failure and if we work away at its problems, peace in Bosnia can last--it will last. That's our mission. Not just for those of us in government but for all those who care so deeply about Bosnia's future, including many people I see in this room today. Some of us have disagreed on tactics in the past. No doubt we'll continue to have our differences in the months to come. So let's keep debating. But above all, let's keep acting and moving forward together. We owe at least that to the people of Bosnia.

COPYRIGHT 1996 U.S. Government Printing Office
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