U.S. Department of State 
Dispatch, Volume 7, Number 32, August 5, 1996 
Bureau of Public Affairs 
 
 
 
ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE: 
 
1. American Security in a Changing World--President Clinton 
2. Iran-Libya Sanctions Act of 1996 
3. U.S. Foreign Policy--A Principled And Purposeful Role in the World--
Secretary Christopher  
4. Efforts To Implement the Cuban LIBERTAD Act--Jeffrey Davidow 
 
 
 
Article 1: 
 
American Security in a Changing World 
President Clinton 
Remarks at George Washington University, Washington, DC, August 5, 1996 
 
I want to thank the family members of the victims of Pan Am Flight 103 
who are here with me today, as well as two of those who were held 
hostage in Iran back in 1980 who are here today--and 1979. Thank you for 
coming.  
 
I'm pleased to be back here at George Washington, especially as you 
celebrate your 175th anniversary. President James Monroe signed the 
congressional charter establishing GW. I can only applaud his wisdom and 
hope that 175 years from now our Administration will be associated with 
a similarly proud legacy. I think he would be very proud if he could see 
what GW has become. 
 
Last night, the Centennial Olympics came to an end. It was a great 
Olympics for America not only because of the triumphs of our athletes, 
but also because of the magnificent job done by the city of Atlanta and 
all the other hosts. But, in a larger sense, it was a great event not 
just for Americans, but for people everywhere who believe in peace and 
freedom, who believe in individual achievement and common effort. 
 
I believe we love the Olympics because they work the way we think the 
world ought to work. They are possible because all different kinds of 
people come together in mutual respect and mutual acceptance of the 
rules of the games. No one wins by breaking their opponent's legs or by 
bad-mouthing their opponents in a public forum. Instead, victory comes 
from doing well in a good way. And all who strive are honored, as we saw 
when our volunteers cleared the track for the brave, injured marathon 
runner who was the very last finisher in the race. 
 
Most individuals and teams from the 197 competing nations did not win 
any medals, but they all had their chance, did their best, and were 
better for their efforts. That is what we want for our country and the 
world at the edge of a new century and a new millennium. 
  
In the world of the 21st century, the Olympic way will become possible 
in the lives of more people than ever before. More people than ever 
before will have the chance to live their dreams. The explosion of 
knowledge, communication, travel, and trade will bring us all closer 
together in the global village. But as we saw in that terrible moment of 
terror in Centennial Park, this new openness also makes us more 
vulnerable to the forces of destruction that know no national 
boundaries. 
 
The pipe bomb reminded us, as did the murder of 19 fine American 
servicemen in Saudi Arabia and the still unresolved crash of TWA 800, 
that if we want the benefits of this new world we must defeat the forces 
who would destroy it by killing the innocent, to strike fear and burn 
hatred into the hearts of the rest of us. This is a lesson and a 
responsibility every American must accept. As the Mayor of 
Montoursville, a town of just 5,000 people in Pennsylvania that lost 21 
of its brightest hopes of the future on TWA Flight 800, said, "No matter 
how secluded and how innocent we are, once we leave our community we're 
subject to the troubles of the outside world." 
 
America faces three great challenges as we enter the 21st century:  
keeping the American dream alive for all who are willing to work for it; 
bringing our own country together, not dividing it; and making sure 
America remains the strongest force in the world for peace and freedom, 
security, and prosperity. 
 
I come to this place of learning and reason, a place so focused on the 
future, to explain why we cannot meet our own challenges of opportunity 
and responsibility and community unless we also maintain our 
indispensable role of leadership for peace and freedom in the world. 
 
The worldwide changes in how people work, live, and relate to each other 
are the fastest and perhaps the most profound in history. Most of these 
changes are good:  The Cold War is over; our country is at peace. Our 
economy is strong. Democracy and free markets are taking root on every 
continent. The blocks, the barriers, the borders that defined the world 
for our parents and grandparents are giving way, with the help of a new 
generation of extraordinary technology. Every day millions of people use 
laptops, modems, CD-ROMs, and satellites to send ideas and products and 
money all across the planet in seconds. The opportunities to build a 
safer world and a more prosperous future are enormous. 
 
But for all the promise of our time, we are not free from peril. Fascism 
and communism may be dead or discredited, but the forces of destruction 
live on. We see them in the sudden explosions of ethnic, racial, 
religious, and tribal hatred. We see them in the reckless acts of rogue 
states. We see them especially in the dangerous webs of new threats of 
terrorism, international crime and drug trafficking, and the continuing 
threat that weapons of mass destruction might spread across the globe. 
These forces of destruction find opportunity in the very openness, 
freedom, and progress we cherish. 
 
We must recognize that modern technologies by themselves will not make 
for us a new world of peace and freedom. Technology can be used for good 
or evil. American leadership is necessary to assure that the 
consequences are good. That is why we have worked so hard to seize the 
opportunities created by change and to move swiftly and strongly against 
the new threats that change has produced. 
 
To seize the opportunities, we are strengthening our alliances, 
dramatically reducing the danger of weapons of mass destruction, leading 
the march for peace and democracy  throughout the world, and creating 
much greater prosperity at home by opening markets to American products 
abroad. 
 
Our alliances are the bedrock of American leadership. As we saw in the 
Gulf war, in Haiti, and now in Bosnia, many other nations who share our 
goals will also share our burdens. In Europe we have supported the 
forces of democracy and reform in the former Soviet Union, the removal 
of Russian troops from the Baltics, and led the way to opening NATO's 
doors to Europe's new democracies through the Partnership for Peace, as 
Europe, the main battleground for the bloodiest century in history, is 
finally coming together peacefully. 
 
In Asia we have revitalized our security alliance with Japan, joined 
with South Korea to promote lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, and 
worked steadily to encourage the emergence of a strong, stable, open 
China. The end of the Cold War has also allowed us to lift the dark 
cloud of nuclear fear that had hung over our heads for 50 years. Today 
not a single Russian missile is pointed at our citizens or cities. We 
are cutting Russian and American arsenals by two-thirds from their Cold 
War height. We helped Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakstan to give up their 
nuclear weapons which were left on their land when the Soviet Union 
dissolved. 
 
We are working with Japan and Korea, and we have persuaded North Korea 
to freeze the dangerous nuclear program it had been developing for over 
a decade. We have advanced the struggle for peace and freedom. When 
people live free and at peace, we are more secure because they are less 
likely to resort to violence or to abuse human rights, and more likely 
to be better trading partners and partners in our common struggle 
against terrorism, international crime and drug trafficking, and 
environmental degradation. 
 
Because America is taking those risks for peace and democracy, the 
dictators are gone from Haiti. Democracy is back and the flow of 
desperate refugees has stopped. In Bosnia the snipers' killing fields 
have become children's playing fields once again. In Northern Ireland 
and the Middle East, though difficulties remain, conflicts that once 
seemed unsolvable are moving closer to resolution. 
 
None of these struggles is easy. There is no guarantee of success. But 
we will continue to work for success and we will make a difference. 
 
Finally, we have seized the opportunity to better our people's lives at 
home by opening markets abroad. The true measure of our security 
includes not only physical safety, but economic well-being as well. 
Decades from now people will look back on this period and see the most 
far-reaching changes in the world trading system in generations: changes 
that are good for the American people; changes that include 200 new 
trade agreements, including GATT and NAFTA, the Summit of the Americas, 
the Asian-Pacific leaders' commitment to bring down trade barriers. 
Because of these changes, America is the world's number-one exporter 
again, and we have a million new high-paying jobs as a result. 
 
Now, none of these achievements just happened. They came about because 
we work with others to share the risk and cost of engagement, because we 
use the power of our example and, where necessary, the example of our 
power. They happened because we were willing to make tough choices today 
knowing they would pay off for you tomorrow. Above all, they happen 
because we refuse to listen to those who said that with the Cold War 
over America could choose escapism over engagement. Had we done so we 
would have weakened the world's reach for freedom and tolerance and 
prosperity and undermined our own security and prosperity. 
 
The fact is America remains the indispensable nation. There are times 
when America, and only America, can make a difference between war and 
peace, between freedom and repression, between hope and fear. Of course, 
we can't take on all the world's burden. We cannot become its policemen. 
But where our interests and values demand it and where we can make a 
difference, America must act and lead. 
 
Nowhere is that responsibility more clear or more urgent than in the 
struggle against terrorism. No one is immune, whether you're riding a 
subway in Tokyo or a bus in Tel Aviv, whether you're window shopping in 
London or walking the streets in Moscow, whether you're doing your duty 
in Saudi Arabia or going to work in Oklahoma City. Terrorism has become 
an equal opportunity destroyer, with no respect for borders. 
 
Whether we like it or not, in ways both good and bad we are living in an 
interdependent world. That is why we must break down the walls in our 
mind between foreign and domestic policy. And I might say, Mr. 
President, on this 175th anniversary, that is one of the intellectual 
objectives that I hope our great universities will commit themselves to. 
 
The reality is that our personal, community, and national prosperity 
depend upon our policies on economics in trade at home and abroad. Our 
personal, community, and national well-being depend upon our policies on 
the environment at home and abroad. Most dramatically, our personal, 
community, and national security depend upon our policies on terrorism 
at home and abroad. We cannot advance the common good at home without 
also advancing the common good around the world. We cannot reduce the 
threats to our people without reducing threats to the world beyond our 
borders. That's why the fight against terrorism must be both a national 
priority and a national security priority. 
We have pursued a concerted national and international strategy against 
terrorism on three fronts:   
 
First, beyond our borders, by working more closely than ever with our 
friends and allies;  
Second, here at home, by giving law enforcement the most powerful 
counterterrorism tools available; and,  
Third, in our airports and airplanes by increasing aviation security. 
 
This will be a long, hard struggle. There will be setbacks along the 
way. But just as no enemy could drive us from the fight to meet our 
challenges and protect our values in World War II and the Cold War, we 
will not be driven from the tough fight against terrorism today. 
Terrorism is the enemy of our generation, and we must prevail. 
 
First, on the international front, stopping the spread of terrorism 
clearly requires common action. The United States has a special 
responsibility to lead in this effort. Over the past four years, our 
intelligence services have been sharing more information than ever with 
other nations. We've opened up a law enforcement academy in Budapest 
which is training people from 23 nations, an FBI office in Moscow, and 
just last Friday, Congress gave us the funding for FBI offices in Cairo, 
Islamabad, Tel Aviv, and Beijing. 
 
We have requested more money for intelligence in 1997. This focus is 
making a difference. As the Senate Intelligence Committee concluded in 
its 1996 report on the Intelligence Authorization bill, the work of U.S. 
intelligence agencies against terrorism has been an example of effective 
coordination and information sharing. 
 
I've also worked to rally other nations to the fight against terrorism--
last year at the UN General Assembly; this spring at the historic Summit 
of Peacemakers at Sharm el-Sheikh, where 29 nations, including 13 Arab 
nations for the first time condemned terrorism in Israel and anywhere 
else it occurs in the Middle East and throughout the world; at the G-7 
Summit in Lyon and the recently held follow-on conference we called for 
in Paris, where we were represented ably by the Attorney General. 
 
Now, the point of all these efforts with other countries is not to talk, 
but to act. More countries are acting with us. More countries are taking 
the "no sanctuary" pledge and living up to their extradition laws so 
that terrorists have no place to run or hide. More countries are helping 
us to shut down the gray markets that outfit terrorists with weapons and 
false documents. 
 
Last week in Paris, the G-7 nations and Russia agreed to pursue a 
sweeping set of measures to prevent terrorists from acting, and to catch 
them if they do. And we set timetables with specific dates by which 
progress must be made. We are also working with Saudi Arabia to improve 
the security of our forces stationed there, so that we can continue to 
deter aggression by rogue states and stand against terrorism in the 
Middle East. 
 
After Khobar Towers I immediately ordered investigation by the FBI and a 
commission headed by Gen. Wayne Downing, which is to report to me later 
this month. While it's too early to reach conclusions, these 
investigations are moving aggressively in cooperation with our host. And 
we are working with the Saudi government to move almost all our troops 
to other bases to better protect them from terrorist attacks. 
 
Even though we're working more closely with our allies than ever, and 
there is more agreement on what needs to be done than ever, we do not 
always agree. Where we don't agree, the United States cannot and will 
not refuse to do what we believe is right. That is why we have 
maintained or strengthened sanctions against states that sponsor 
terrorism:  Iran, Iraq, Libya, and Sudan. You cannot do business with 
countries that practice commerce with you by day while funding or 
protecting the terrorists who kill you and your innocent civilians by 
night. That is wrong. I hope, and expect, that before long our allies 
will come around to accepting this fundamental truth. 
 
This morning I signed into law the Iran-Libya Sanctions Act. It builds 
on what we have already done to isolate those regimes by imposing tough 
penalties on foreign companies that go forward with new investments in 
key sectors. The act will help to deny them the money they need to 
finance international terrorism or to acquire weapons of mass 
destruction. It will increase the pressure on Libya to extradite the 
suspects in the bombing of Pan Am 103. 
 
With us today, as I said before, are some of those families and the 
loved ones of other victims of terrorism sponsored by Iran and Libya. 
Let me repeat the pledge I made to them earlier. We will not rest in our 
efforts to track down, prosecute, and punish terrorists, and to keep the 
heat on those who support them. And we must not rest in that effort. 
 
The second part of our strategy is to give American law enforcement 
officials the most powerful tools available to fight terrorism without 
undermining our civil liberties. In the wake of Oklahoma City, I 
strengthened the terrorism bill I had previously sent to Congress, but 
which had not then been passed. Despite the vow of Congress to act 
quickly, it took a year before that bill came to my desk to be signed. 
 
The bill had some very good points. It made terrorism a federal offense, 
expanded the role of the FBI, and imposed the death penalty for 
terrorism. But as strong as it was, it did not give our law enforcement 
officials other tools they needed and that they had asked for, including 
increased wiretap authority for terrorists to parallel that which we 
have for people involved in organized crime now, and chemical markers 
for the most common explosives so that we can more easily track down 
bomb makers. 
 
After the bombing in Atlanta, Congress said it would reconsider these 
and other measures. I immediately called the congressional leadership to 
the White House and urged them to put these into law before they left 
for the August recess last Friday. I am disappointed and, more 
importantly, the America people are disappointed that that job was not 
done. These additional measures would save lives. They would make us all 
more secure. When the Congress returns from the August recess, we will 
take them up again and we must get the job done. 
 
There is more I will ask Congress to do. Next month I will submit to 
Congress the international crime control act that our Justice, State, 
and Treasury Departments drafted at my request, because more and more, 
terrorism, international organized crime, and drug trafficking are going 
hand-in-hand. This bill expands our fight against money laundering, so 
criminals and terrorists will have a tougher time financing their 
activities. It strengthens our extradition powers and border controls to 
keep more criminals and terrorists out of America. It increases the 
ability of American law enforcement to prosecute those who commit 
violent crimes against Americans abroad. Congress should pass it. 
 
Once again, I urge the Senate to ratify the Chemical Weapons Convention, 
so that we can eliminate chemical weapons stockpiles and give our law 
enforcement new powers to investigate and prosecute people planning 
attacks with such weapons. We have seen the terrible, destructive impact 
of sarin gas in the Tokyo subway. Within a month of that attack, Japan's 
Diet ratified the Chemical Weapons Convention, but we still have not 
done so. If the Chemical Weapons Convention were in force today, it 
would be much more difficult for terrorists to acquire chemical weapons. 
They are not waiting, and we shouldn't either. 
 
Finally, the third front of our struggle against terrorism is at the 
airports and on the airplanes that bring us all closer together. Air 
travel remains the safest form of transportation. Our airlines have the 
best safety record and security record in the business. But that's a 
small consolation when a single attack can take so many lives. 
 
Last year, we began field testing new high-tech explosive detection 
machines in Atlanta and San Francisco. We significantly increased 
security at our airports, and the FAA created a new government and 
industry panel to review airline security. 
 
After the TWA crash, I ordered new measures to increase the security of 
air travel. As any of you who have flown in recent days will have 
noticed, we are doing more hand searches and machine screening of 
luggage. We are requiring preflight inspections for every plane flying 
to or from the United States--every plane, every cabin, every cargo 
hold, every time. The Vice President is leading a commission on aviation 
security that is to report back to me within 45 days with an action plan 
to deploy machines that can detect the most sophisticated explosives and 
other needed changes. 
 
Now, I know all this has led to some extra inconvenience for air 
travelers, and it may lead eventually to a modest increase in the cost 
of air travel. But the increased safety and peace of mind will be worth 
it. 
 
So, greater international cooperation, stronger American law 
enforcement, safer air travel--these are the fronts of our concerted 
strategy against terrorism. Much of this work by law enforcement, 
intelligence, and military professionals goes unheralded, but we are 
getting results. For example, we prevented attacks on the United Nations 
and the Holland Tunnel in New York. We thwarted an attempt to bomb 
American passenger planes from the skies over the Pacific. We convicted 
those responsible for the World Trade Center bombing and arrested 
suspects in the Oklahoma City and Unabomber cases. We have tracked down 
terrorists around the world and extradited more terrorists in four years 
than in the previous 12. 
 
But I want to make it clear to the American people that while we can 
defeat terrorists, it will be a long time before we defeat terrorism. 
America will remain a target because we are uniquely present in the 
world, because we act to advance peace and democracy, because we have 
taken a tougher stand against terrorism, and because we are the most 
open society on earth. But to change any of that, to pull our troops 
from the world's trouble spots, to turn our backs on those taking risks 
for peace, to weaken our opposition against terrorism, or to curtail the 
freedom that is our birth right would be to give terrorism a victory it 
must not and will not have. 
 
In this fight, as in so many other challenges around the world, American 
leadership is indispensable. In assuming our leadership in the struggle 
against terrorism, we must be neither reluctant nor arrogant, but 
realistic, determined, and confident. And we must understand that in 
this battle we must deploy more than police and military resources. 
Every one of you counts; every American counts. 
 
Our greatest strength is our confidence. And that is the target of the 
terrorists. Make no mistake about it:  The bombs that kill and maim 
innocent people are not really aimed at them, but at the spirit of our 
whole country and the spirit of freedom. Therefore, the struggle against 
terrorism involves more than the new security measures I have ordered 
and the others I am seeking. Ultimately, it requires the confident will 
of the American people to retain our convictions for freedom and peace 
and to remain the indispensable force in creating a better world at the 
dawn of a new century. 
 
Everywhere I travel on behalf of our country I encounter people who look 
up to us because of what we stand for and what we are willing to stand 
against. I have said this before, but when Hillary and I visited the 
Olympic Village I was so moved by the athletes who came up to me and 
talked about what America had meant to their country:  a young Croatian 
athlete who thanked me for our efforts there, not long after Secretary 
Brown's plane crashed and Secretary Kantor had finished the mission; an 
Irish athlete who thanked me for our efforts to bring peace in Northern 
Ireland; a Palestinian athlete who said that he had--he came from a very 
old people, but they never had an Olympic team until they made peace 
with Israel, and that many people wanted to keep that peace. 
 
This responsibility is great, and I know it weighs heavily on many 
Americans. But we should embrace this responsibility because at this 
point in time no one else can do what we can do to advance peace and 
freedom and democracy--and because it is necessary at this point in time 
for our own peace and freedom and prosperity. 
  
As we remember the Centennial Olympics, the weeks of courage and 
triumph, and the wonder of the world's youth bound together by the rules 
of the game in genuine mutual respect, let us resolve to work for a 
world that looks more like that in the 21st century, to stand strong 
against the moments of terror that would destroy our spirit, to stand 
for the values that have brought us so many blessings, values that have 
made us at this pivotal moment the indispensable nation. Thank you very 
much. 

(###) 
 
 
 
Article 2: 
 
Iran-Libya Sanctions Act of 1996 
Remarks by President Clinton at signing ceremony, Washington, DC, August 
5, 1996. 
 
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. It's good to be joined today by 
Senator D'Amato and Congressmen Cardin, Gajdenson, Gilman, King, and 
Matsui; family members of the victims of Pan Am Flight 103; and two 
brave Americans who suffered the nightmare of being taken hostage in the 
Middle East. 
 
We come together around a common commitment to strengthen our fight 
against terrorism. Terrorism has many faces, to be sure, but Iran and 
Libya are two of the most dangerous supporters of terrorism in the 
world. The Iran and Libya sanctions bill I sign today will help to deny 
those countries the money they need to finance international terrorism. 
It will limit the flow of resources necessary to obtain weapons of mass 
destruction. It will heighten pressure on Libya to extradite the 
suspects in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103. 
 
From the skies over Lockerbie to Khobar Towers, from the World Trade 
Center to Centennial Park, America has felt the pain of terrorism abroad 
and at home. From the Tokyo subway to the streets of Tel Aviv, we know 
that no nation is immune. We have not yet solved all these tragedies; we 
will not rest until we do so. But one thing is clear: To succeed in this 
battle we need to wage it together, as one America leading the community 
of civilized nations. 
 
Our nation is fighting terrorism on three fronts: first, abroad, through 
closer cooperation with our allies; second, at home, by giving our law 
enforcement officials the most powerful counter-terrorism tools 
available; and third, by improving security in our airports and on our 
airplanes. Last week in Paris, with America's leadership, the G-7 
nations and Russia agreed on a sweeping set of measures to prevent 
terrorists from acting and to catch them when they do. We have seen that 
when we pool our strength we can obtain results. We will continue to 
press our allies to join with us in increasing the pressure on Iran and 
Libya to stop their support of terrorists. We already have acted 
ourselves, through our own sanctions, and with this legislation we are 
asking our allies to join with us more effectively. 
 
With this legislation we strike hard where it counts, against those who 
target innocent lives and our very way of life. It shows we are fully 
prepared to act to restrict the funds to Iran and Libya that fuel 
terrorist attacks. America will not rest, and I resolve to hunt down, 
prosecute, and punish terrorists and to put pressure on states that 
support them. The survivors of terrorism, the families of its victims 
who surround me, and all the American people deserve nothing less. (###) 
 
 
Article 3: 
 
U.S. Foreign Policy--A Principled And Purposeful Role in the World 
Secretary Christopher 
Statement before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee,  Washington, 
DC, August 1, 1996 
 
Mr. Chairman, members of the committee: I am pleased to testify before 
you once again. Senator Pell, on this occasion I want to salute you for 
the enormous contributions you have made to our foreign policy during 
your years of service. The American people, and especially the Foreign 
Service, are deeply indebted to you. 
 
We are now in this Administration's fourth year in office--the fourth 
year of  a challenging and, I believe, unusually productive period in 
American foreign policy. I thought that this would be an appropriate 
time and place to look at what we have accomplished over the last 3-1/2 
years and where we need to go from here. 
 
At my confirmation hearing in January 1993, I said that our 
Administration has the responsibility for maintaining U.S. leadership in 
the post-Cold War era. I do not claim that we have achieved every one of 
our goals. But I believe that we have passed what I then called the 
"ultimate test" of our leadership: whether it delivers concrete benefits 
to the American people; whether the American people are more secure and 
more prosperous; and whether our nation is in a better position to 
advance our enduring interests and ideals. 
 
At my confirmation, I also said that the changes we have seen since the 
end of the Cold War have largely worked in America's favor. I remain an 
optimist about America's future. As we enter a new century, I believe 
our foreign policy is on the right track. As long as we continue to lead 
and to meet our commitments--and as long as we adequately fund our 
international engagement--I am confident we will be able to meet our 
responsibilities to the American people.  
 
The events of the last several years demonstrate that the need for our 
leadership is as acute today as it was during the Cold War. Imagine what 
the world would be like had the United States not led. The war in Bosnia 
would continue, threatening a wider conflict and eroding NATO. There 
would be little prospect of peace in the Middle East. The Non-
Proliferation Treaty--the most important global barrier against the 
spread of nuclear weapons--would have expired. North Korea would be 
building dozens of nuclear bombs. Thugs would still rule Haiti and their 
victims would still be fleeing to our shores. The Mexican economy would 
be in free fall, threatening our prosperity and that of all emerging 
markets. The GATT Uruguay Round negotiations would have failed, dashing 
hopes for a more open global economy. In many of these cases, there was 
a substantial body of opinion against the course the President decided 
to follow. But because we stayed the course, America is better off. 
 
Most Americans continue to support a principled and purposeful  role for 
the United States in the world. The President, with help from members of 
both parties, is winning the domestic debate for international 
engagement and against isolationism. 
 
Mr. Chairman, let me review with you today four areas where our 
leadership remains indispensable to protect the interests of the 
American people.  
 
First, we must effectively manage our relations with the world's 
greatest powers, both our allies and former adversaries. 
 
Second, we must continue promoting peace and stability in regions of 
vital interest. 
 
Third, we must sustain the remarkable momentum we have achieved in 
creating jobs at home by opening markets abroad. 
 
Finally, we must intensify our efforts to confront an array of global 
challenges that no one nation can meet on its own.  
 
Alliances and Great Powers
 
Two years ago, I observed that an important benefit of the post-Cold War 
world is the absence of conflict and the extent of cooperation among the 
great powers--the United States, our European allies, Japan, Russia, and 
China. Today, Russian missiles are no longer targeted on our cities. 
China helped us turn back the threat posed by North Korea's nuclear 
program. In these and so many other ways, the American people have 
benefited from our effective diplomacy. Maintaining this unique 
historical situation among the great powers is in our overwhelming 
interest, especially at a time when Russia and China are undergoing vast 
and uncertain transitions. It has been a central concern for  the 
President and for me.  
 
For the past half-century, there has been bipartisan agreement on the 
importance of strengthening and broadening our partnership with Europe. 
Last December, President Clinton launched a New Transatlantic Agenda 
with the leaders of the European Union to expand our economic ties and 
intensify our cooperation on political and security challenges around 
the world. President Clinton has also pursued a comprehensive strategy 
to prevent future conflicts in an integrated Europe. That strategy has 
made great strides since the President defined its key elements at the 
NATO summit in Brussels in January 1994. Since then, NATO's Partnership 
for Peace has enabled the nations of central and eastern Europe and the 
former Soviet Union to plan, exercise, and train with NATO forces. It 
laid the groundwork for the NATO-led coalition in Bosnia--the  largest 
mission in NATO's history. And  in June, NATO agreed to American 
initiatives that will enable it to respond rapidly to out-of-area crises 
and give our European allies a greater share of responsibility. 
 
NATO enlargement has also come far since the Brussels summit. I know 
this issue has been of great interest to the Congress, so let me repeat 
here what I said last March in Prague: NATO enlargement is on track and 
it will happen. Right now, we are intensively consulting with interested 
countries to determine what they must do, and what NATO must do, to 
prepare for their accession. NATO will take the next steps in this 
process in December.  
 
NATO enlargement, to be done right, must continue along the deliberate 
path the President has laid out. Enlargement involves the most solemn 
commitments that one nation can make to another. It will require new 
members to transform the structure, doctrine, and equipment of their 
armed forces. We are committed to airing it fully in the Congress and 
with the American people. When the first new members are admitted, we 
must also ensure that the door stays open to others.  
 
I am very pleased that enlargement has enjoyed bipartisan support among 
members of Congress. The Senate, of course, will play a critical role in 
ratifying the admission of new allies, and we will consult with you 
fully as the process unfolds.  
 
With Japan, after much hard work, our relationship is on a sounder basis 
than it was when we took office. In April, President Clinton and Prime 
Minister Hashimoto signed a security declaration that will enable our 
alliance to meet the challenges of the next century. We have reached 21 
market-opening agreements with Japan, and American exports to Japan are 
now rising five times as fast as imports. We are pursuing an ambitious 
common agenda to address global issues such as the environment, 
population, crime, and drugs. 
 
Last week, Secretary Perry and I traveled to Sydney for the intensive 
talks we hold each year with Australia, for half a century the strong 
southern anchor of our Pacific alliances. The security declaration we 
issued reflects our intention to reinforce our alliance to meet the 
challenges of the next century. Our two nations will benefit from the 
military training facilities we agreed to expand in Australia, along 
with our robust schedule of joint exercises. 
 
With Russia, President Clinton has understood our critical stake in the 
success of that country's efforts to become democratic, stable, and 
prosperous. The President has been unwavering in his determination to 
engage with Russia to advance the interests that we share. As a result, 
Americans are more secure. We have achieved massive reductions in 
nuclear arsenals and we are working to keep nuclear materials from 
terrorists and rogue states. Our troops are serving together in Bosnia. 
In our meeting last week in Jakarta, Foreign Minister Primakov announced 
that Russia will join us to support the current text of the 
Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, helping to meet our goal of opening the 
treaty for signature by September. 
 
We have had no illusions that Russia's transformation would be easy or 
quick. But this month, Russia passed a historic milestone. The election 
showed that the Russian people are determined to preserve the new 
freedoms they have gained and continue to pursue the path of reform, 
despite the hardships they still endure. That means we can move forward 
with the cooperative agenda that has already done so much to advance our 
shared interests. 
 
We will continue our critical work together on arms control and non-
proliferation, as well as our discussions on Russia's developing 
relationship with NATO. We will redouble our efforts to promote U.S. 
investment in Russia and to encourage the conditions in which investment 
can thrive--a top priority of the commission chaired by Vice President 
Gore and Prime Minister Chernomyrdin. We will encourage Russia to meet 
its IMF commitments and we will continue to speak clearly and forcefully 
when we disagree with Russian policies, as we do on the continuing war 
in Chechnya. 
 
We have restored positive momentum to our relations with China, a nation 
that will have a growing impact on the security and prosperity of the 
world. As Secretary of State, I have the responsibility to develop our 
relationship in ways that benefit the United States. After a period of 
difficulty, we have made significant progress in recent months. We have 
reached an important new understanding on nuclear exports, concluded an 
agreement on intellectual property rights, and moved forward with our 
bilateral security dialogue.  
 
Now we have a chance to build on these developments and deepen our 
cooperation. China is critical to ensuring a non-nuclear Korean 
Peninsula and to completing the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. We hope 
to expand our cooperation on a growing range of common challenges, from 
fighting narcotics to protecting the environment and strengthening the 
global trading system. In this connection, we continue to support 
China's accession to the World Trade Organization on commercially 
acceptable terms. 
 
The United States also has an interest in the peaceful resolution of 
issues between the P.R.C. and Taiwan. We have made clear, through our 
words and actions, that a resort to force will have grave consequences. 
The United States remains committed to our "one China" policy and the 
three joint communiques, and urges a resumption of cross-strait 
dialogue. We also have a strong interest in a smooth transition in Hong 
Kong, and preservation of its open political and economic system. Of 
course, the United States and China continue to face areas of important 
differences, such as human rights. While we will press our concerns, we 
will manage this and other differences constructively. 
 
In order to pursue all these interests, we must have regular high-level 
contacts with China. Last week in Jakarta, I met with Chinese Foreign 
Minister Qian for the 14th time and I laid out a series of high-level 
visits between our cabinet officials and Chinese leaders. I accepted an 
invitation to visit Beijing in November. We are also planning a series 
of cabinet-level exchanges in the months ahead. We will continue to 
encourage China to pursue its modernization in ways that contribute to 
the overall security and prosperity of the region   and the world. 
 
Building Peace in Regions of Vital Interest
 
A second fundamental priority for this Administration has been to 
prevent and resolve conflicts in regions of vital importance to the 
United States. Our efforts prevent local conflicts from becoming wider 
wars that could threaten our allies or embroil American troops. They 
safeguard stability in regions with key shipping lanes and economic 
resources. And in the best tradition of our nation and people, they help 
to avert humanitarian crises and save lives. 
 
Last year in Europe, American diplomacy backed by force ended the worst 
conflict that continent had seen since the Second World War. Now eight 
months have passed since the signing of the Dayton Agreement ended the 
killing in Bosnia. Our troops have completed their most important task: 
assuring the disengagement and demobilization of the warring armies. Our 
program to train and equip the Bosnian army has begun. All over the 
country, mines are being cleared, roads and schools are being reopened, 
economic activity is returning, and families are being reunited. 
 
I will not minimize the considerable challenges we still face. But real 
peace can only be built one small step at a time, and every step Bosnia 
takes toward peace makes it less likely that violence will resume. That 
is why we are determined to stick with this process. 
 
Our most important task now is to create the conditions in Bosnia under 
which free elections can be held in September. Elections will not 
resolve Bosnia's problems overnight, but they are the only sure way to 
give the people of Bosnia a voice in shaping their future--the voice 
they were denied by the war. We are helping them by supervising voter 
registration, setting up local electoral commissions with citizen 
involvement, and inaugurating an Open Broadcast Network to give 
candidates access to the media. 
 
As you know, we have made it consistently clear that indicted war 
criminals must have no role in these elections. To achieve that goal, we 
have maintained steady pressure on Serbia and the Bosnian Serbs, and two 
weeks ago, I asked Dick Holbrooke to return to the region. He obtained 
an undertaking that Radovan Karadzic would resign from the leadership of 
his political party--the SDS, and remove himself from public life for 
good. As this agreement is implemented, the election can begin to 
establish a new leadership for Bosnia that is committed to the peace 
process. At the same time, we will not be satisfied until indicted war 
criminals like Karadzic and Mladic are brought to justice in The Hague. 
 
Mr. Chairman, we have given our forces in Bosnia a precisely defined set 
of tasks that can be completed in approximately one year. IFOR's mission 
is on track, and as the President and Vice President have made very 
clear, it will end on schedule. 
 
Clearly, one of the most important questions we face is how to ensure an 
adequate security environment after IFOR leaves, so that the peace 
process continues to move forward. But we simply cannot say today what 
the requirements will be for maintaining security in Bosnia five months 
from now. We have to see how the elections turn out and what sort of 
political conditions they produce before we can make any comprehensive 
judgments about security in the coming year. 
 
One thing we can say today is that the Dayton deadlines both can and 
must be met, including the deadline for IFOR's withdrawal. Thus far, the 
progress we have made in Bosnia has come from setting strict time limits 
and sticking to them. We must not give the parties any reason to believe 
they can delay in meeting their commitments. 
 
When President Clinton took office, he also recognized America's 
overriding strategic, economic, and moral interest in achieving a 
lasting peace in the Middle East. Our deep involvement has paid rich 
dividends. Israel and the Palestinians have taken historic steps toward 
ending their conflict. Palestinians in Gaza and in most of the cities of 
the West Bank now govern themselves, and their elected leaders cooperate 
with Israel to fight terrorism. Israel has also made peace with Jordan 
and forged diplomatic and economic contacts with many countries in the 
Arab world. With our active help, the political landscape of the region 
has begun to change fundamentally. 
 
We are now working with the new government of Israel and our Arab 
partners to preserve the gains of the last few years and to build upon 
them. Since the prime minister's meeting with President Clinton in 
Washington, we have seen positive developments. Israel completed a round 
of diplomacy with Egypt, Jordan, and Oman. It reaffirmed its commitment 
to implement the Oslo agreements, including redeployment from Hebron. 
Israeli Foreign Minister Levy met with Chairman Arafat. This week in 
Washington, President Mubarak assured President Clinton and me that 
Egypt will remain a strong pillar for peace. On his recent trip, my 
envoy Dennis Ross found the parties dedicated to pursuing peace and 
finding ways to move forward. Of course, many difficult decisions and 
issues lie ahead. But the President and I are determined to stay engaged 
because pursuing a comprehensive peace remains in the interest of the 
United States, Israel, and our Arab partners. 
 
President Clinton has also recognized that with the end of the Cold War, 
the Asia-Pacific region is more important to our interests than ever 
before. We have carried out a strategy that has produced concrete 
benefits for each and every American. Americans are more secure because 
we have invigorated our core alliances and maintained 100,000 troops in 
a region where we have fought three wars in the past half century. We 
are more prosperous because we have opened markets among the fastest-  
growing economies in the world.  
 
Across the region, American leadership remains the essential 
underpinning for security and prosperity--a view shared by the leaders 
of virtually every country that took part in the ASEAN regional forum 
that I attended last week in Jakarta. Our participation in the forum, 
now in its third year, supports our efforts to reduce tension and 
promote stability in a region where we have fought three wars in the 
last half-century. 
 
Last week, I was instrumental in placing the need for a political 
dialogue on Burma on the agenda of the forum. Our support for the Cohen-
Feinstein-Chafee amendment in the Senate sent another clear message on 
Burma: If there is a crackdown against Aung San Suu Kyi or large scale 
repression of the opposition, the United States will definitely impose 
sanctions and seek to mobilize international support to do the same. 
 
This Administration has given the highest priority to safeguarding peace 
on the Korean Peninsula, the last fault line of the Cold War. Building 
on the close contacts between President Clinton and President Kim, the 
United States and South Korea have reinforced our alliance and expanded 
our cooperation. Thanks to the Agreed Framework we concluded in October 
1994, North Korea's dangerous nuclear program is frozen and on the road 
to the scrap heap. Nuclear fuel that could have been used to make 
weapons is now moving into IAEA-safeguarded storage.  
 
At our urging, our friends and allies from South Korea to the EU have 
lined up to support a key element of the framework, the Korean Peninsula 
Energy Development Organization--KEDO. For the world's most powerful 
nation and largest economy, our 1996 commitment of $25 million is a tiny 
investment compared to the literally billions of dollars in 
contributions that South Korea and Japan alone are making, or the 
immeasurable costs of a conflict in Korea. I welcomed the Senate's vote 
last week to restore full funding for KEDO, and I urge the conference 
committee to do likewise. 
 
In this hemisphere, our leadership remains vital to sustain remarkable 
progress toward peace and democracy, and to the new cooperation that 
President Clinton has spearheaded through the Miami summit process. Over 
the last year, American diplomacy has played a critical role in stemming 
a coup attempt in Paraguay and halting a border conflict between Ecuador 
and Peru. In Nicaragua, our support has helped prepare for elections 
this fall, which should mark the first transition from one freely 
elected government to another this century. We have sent a powerful 
message throughout the hemisphere that democracy cannot be overturned 
with impunity. 
 
In the aftermath of Cuba's deadly assault on unarmed civilian aircraft, 
President Clinton acted decisively. We won the UN Security Council's 
first condemnation of Cuba. The President signed and moved to implement 
the Helms-Burton Act. I can assure you that the President and I will be 
working hard to press our allies and friends to join with us in 
isolating Cuba's dictatorship.  
 
In Haiti, President Clinton's firmness and patience allowed American 
troops to come in peace and to leave on time. While many difficulties 
remain, security and human rights conditions have improved for the 
Haitian people. The tragic and destabilizing flow of migrants has been 
stemmed. We have sent a powerful message that democracy in the Americas 
cannot be overturned with impunity. Continued support for economic 
reforms and development is essential if  Haiti is to overcome the legacy 
of its repressive past and become a stable neighbor that can give its 
citizens decent lives at home. 
 
Running through all these actions, Mr. Chairman, is a commitment to 
defend democracy and human rights. From Bosnia to Burma to Cuba, we are 
convinced that lasting stability can best be assured by governments that 
are accountable to the people they govern. This has been and will remain 
a central principle of American foreign policy. 
 
International institutions such as the United Nations can also be a 
critical tool to advance our interests, including our interest in peace 
and stability. Without the UN and its peacekeeping capabilities, we 
would be left with just two alternatives when crises such as the one in 
Haiti arise: sending American troops or doing nothing at all. We would 
be unable to maintain sanctions against rogue states and to prevent them 
from acquiring nuclear weapons. And we would not have the means to care 
for millions of refugees and fight effectively against epidemic diseases 
such as smallpox and AIDS.  
 
There is broad agreement that the UN has serious problems. Though a 
great deal of progress has been made, it is still seriously in need of 
further reform. The President and I have made clear that tangible reform 
is essential to sustain the support of the Congress and the American 
people for the UN. And we have insisted on the need for a new secretary-
general. At the same time, Mr. Chairman, we cannot lead effectively on 
these issues unless we meet our financial commitments to the UN. We 
simply cannot reform and retreat at the same time. 
 
Promoting Open Markets and Prosperity
 
A third central priority for President Clinton has been creating jobs 
for Americans at home by opening markets abroad. I believe that the 
President's extraordinary success in this regard will stand as a lasting 
legacy of his Administration. We have put the bottom lines of American 
business on the front lines of American diplomacy. The more than 200 
trade agreements we have negotiated over the last three years have 
helped our exports grow by 34% since 1993 and created 1.6 million new 
jobs. By passing NAFTA, concluding the GATT Uruguay Round, and forging 
the Miami summit commitment to achieve free and open trade in our 
hemisphere by 2005 and the APEC commitment to do the same in the Asia-
Pacific by 2020, the President has positioned the United States to 
become an even more dynamic hub of the global economy in the 21st 
century. 
 
I used my meetings in Jakarta last week to lay out our goals for two 
events that can shape our trade relations and create jobs for Americans 
into the next century. At the APEC leaders' meeting in Manila this 
November, we will move forward with specific commitments to open trade 
in the Asia-Pacific region and find new ways to involve the private 
sector. In December, we will use the first ministerial meeting of the 
World Trade Organization in Singapore to galvanize our trade partners to 
carry out their Uruguay Round commitments, and to complete the Round's 
"unfinished business" in telecommunications and financial services. We 
will also work hard to set the WTO's priorities for the early 21st 
century--opening new sectors, increasing the transparency of government 
procurement, and addressing the relationship between trade and core 
labor standards. 
 
President Clinton has recognized that our economic security at home 
depends on shaping economic forces abroad. That is why, even in the face 
of considerable opposition, the President acted to support Mexico at its 
time of grave financial crisis. The Mexican Government's announcement 
last week that it would repay early two-thirds of its remaining debt to 
the U.S. demonstrates that our strategy worked. The Mexican economy is 
beginning to recover, and U.S. exports to Mexico are running at an all-
time high. 
 
Facing Global Challenges
 
Finally, we are intensifying our efforts to confront the transnational 
security challenges we face, including proliferation, terrorism, 
international crime and narcotics, and damage to the environment. These 
threats respect no border, ocean, or committee jurisdiction. They must 
be fought at home and abroad. 
 
As a young republic, the United States was first forced to emerge from 
isolation to combat the pirates that threatened our maritime trade. 
Today's pirates launch cowardly bombing attacks and sell drugs to our 
children. They cannot be defeated by one nation alone. But they can be 
stopped if the international community stands united and vigilant, and 
the United States leads the way. 
 
We are far safer today from armed conflict and nuclear war than we were 
during the Cold War. But as the events of recent weeks have tragically 
shown us, this is not a time when we can take our security and our 
freedom for granted. The purpose of terrorism is to strike fear into 
open societies; it can be overcome as long as we do not surrender to 
fear. 
 
From the start of our Administration, the President has identified 
terrorism as one of the primary security challenges we face in the post-
Cold War world. In fact, the President laid out a strategy to contain 
state sponsors of terrorism in early 1993. Since then, our nation has 
been leading the world in the fight against terrorism. We have had some 
successes, but clearly, much more needs to be done. 
 
On Tuesday, Attorney General Reno led our delegation to a ministerial 
meeting on terrorism in Paris. The meeting adopted a U.S. proposal to 
protect mass transportation by setting uniform standards for bomb 
detection, ensuring that explosives can be marked and traced, and 
standardizing passenger and cargo manifests. The meeting also agreed to 
negotiate an international treaty on terrorist bombings. In this treaty, 
we will press to make such bombings an international crime wherever they 
occur, to require countries to share more information on bombing 
suspects, and to make it certain they will be tried or extradited when 
caught. 
 
With the help of Congress, the United States has already taken the lead 
by being among the first to ratify an existing series of 10 anti-
terrorism conventions, and by strengthening our network of bilateral 
extradition treaties. Our efforts have paid off with the capture and 
trial in the United States of all the World Trade Center bombing 
suspects, as well as the conviction of TWA hijacker Ali Rizak. We also, 
of course, worked together to create the Anti-Terrorism Act of 1996, and 
to put into place provisions making it easier to stop terrorist 
fundraising in this country. 
 
I don't think anyone has worked harder than I have to isolate the states 
which sponsor these terrible crimes. President Clinton has taken 
unprecedented steps to deny Iran the resources it needs to finance its 
support for terrorism. We will continue to urge our European allies to 
abandon their unsuccessful efforts at dialogue and join us. We will 
continue to work in the UN Security Council to maintain and strengthen 
the sanctions regime against Libya, and President Clinton will shortly 
sign the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act. 
 
As the President has said, we want to work with the Congress in this 
urgent fight. I call on Congress to adopt the President's proposals to 
strengthen our domestic counterterrorism efforts. 
 
Mr. Chairman, strong law enforcement and intelligence are critical to 
our fight against terrorism. But we will not defeat this scourge simply 
by being prepared at home. We must continue to support peace in places 
like the Middle East. We must build strong partnerships with other 
nations to ensure they cooperate with us while denying support to 
lawbreakers and outlaw regimes. We must keep deadly weapons from falling 
into the wrong hands. In short, we must continue to lead. 
 
This Administration has pursued a far-reaching agenda to stop the spread 
of weapons of mass destruction, the gravest potential threat to the 
United States and our allies. Last year, American leadership helped 
secure the unconditional and indefinite extension of the Nuclear Non-
Proliferation Treaty. Our goal of concluding a Comprehensive Test Ban 
Treaty this year is within reach. Meetings on the draft treaty resumed 
this Monday in Geneva. While imperfect, the text of the treaty as it now 
stands will strengthen the security of the United States and the world.  
 
This year, we must also ratify the Chemical Weapons Convention. I want 
to thank this committee for its bipartisan vote in favor of 
ratification. As you know, the treaty is very near to entering into 
force, and it is critical that the United States be a full participant 
in this early stage. This treaty will make it far less likely that these 
deadly weapons will ever be used against our people or our troops. And 
it will make it more difficult and more costly for terrorists to acquire 
them. 
 
Let me also urge you to give prompt and favorable consideration to  the 
Nuclear Safety Convention, which obliges nations to operate their 
nuclear facilities safely and report to others that they have done so. 
This treaty will give us an effective instrument to press Russia and 
other countries to improve the safety of their reactors. It is surely in 
our national interest. But we must ratify it by October 24, the day it 
enters into force, if we are to have a role in its implementation. 
 
The State Department is advancing the President's strategy to put 
international criminals and drug traffickers out of business. We are 
intensifying international cooperation from Mexico to Australia through 
training programs, extradition treaties, and assistance. With Congress's 
support, we will step up our crop substitution and aerial eradication 
programs in Latin America, and our efforts against heroin traffickers in 
South and Southeast Asia. We have stepped up the pressure against drug 
traffickers in Colombia and, as you know, we have denied a visa to 
President Samper.  
 
Our Administration is also working to protect the security and well-
being of American citizens by putting environmental issues where they 
belong: in the mainstream of American diplomacy. The environment affects 
our national interests in two ways. Environmental threats transcend 
borders and oceans to influence directly the health and prosperity of 
American citizens. Natural resource issues are also critical to 
political and economic stability, and to pursuing our strategic goals 
around the world. For these reasons, I launched an initiative this 
spring to integrate environmental issues into every aspect of our 
diplomacy. 
 
For example, we are making greater use of environmental initiatives to 
promote peace in the Middle East and democracy in Central Europe. In 
Ukraine, our assistance is helping to close the Chernobyl nuclear power 
plant, which still poses a danger to the citizens of a dozen countries 
and drains the resources needed to build a secure market democracy. In 
Brazil, USAID programs are saving hundreds of thousands of acres of rain 
forests containing countless numbers of species of potential importance 
to medicine and science. In Africa, our assistance programs are 
demonstrating that preserving the environment reinforces economic 
development. 
 
As a result of discussions on climate change in Geneva two weeks ago, we 
have moved to promote binding targets for reduction of greenhouse gases. 
We are making sure that our proposals will create flexible procedures 
that do not impose unreasonable burdens on American business or 
consumers. Indeed, our environmental programs are helping American 
companies expand their already commanding share of a $400 billion market 
for environmental technology. 
 
Mr. Chairman, I know that our human rights, democracy, and development 
programs are of particular interest to many of you on this committee. 
They  are a clear-eyed investment in helping ensure that more nations 
emerge as stable, prosperous democracies and fewer fall victim to costly 
humanitarian crises. They are the proverbial ounce of prevention in a 
world where the "cure" often requires sacrifices in lives as well as 
money.  
 
This kind of assistance certainly cannot solve every problem. It is no 
substitute for good government in the states we assist, and it cannot 
make up for failed economic policies. But we have learned many lessons 
in the last few decades about what works and what does not, and we are 
applying them well.  
 
Our assistance programs are helping ease the burden that rapid 
population growth places on economic growth and the health of the global 
environment. They are strengthening accountable governments that respect 
human rights. By enforcing our trade laws, we have gained commitments 
from Guatemala and Pakistan this year to improve enforcement of labor 
standards for children and adults, and I am pleased to say that a recent 
mission to Guatemala was able to document significant progress. And they 
are helping build democracies in regions like southern Africa, which 
boasted only one democracy just seven years ago. Today, 10 countries 
from South Africa to Malawi are successfully making this difficult 
transition. 
 
Conclusion
 
There is much more work to be done, Mr. Chairman, in all the areas I 
have mentioned today. We have a solid record upon which to build, and a 
sound structure for moving forward. 
 
The President and I will continue to do our part to sustain American 
leadership in the world. And let me assure you that we will continue to 
work with you and the full Congress as you do your part. As I have said 
many times before, our leadership cannot be maintained on the cheap. We 
need the resources to support our people and our posts. We need to 
sustain concrete support for democracy and development. We need to let 
our allies and adversaries know that the United States will do what it 
must to meet its commitments and to protect its interests. 
 
If we do, then as the President has said, 
 
"We can enter the 21st century with a military whose fighting edge is 
sharper than ever; with a peaceful, undivided Europe and stable, 
prosperous Asia; with fewer nuclear weapons in the world's arsenals and 
tough new agreements to control chemical and biological weapons; with 
terrorists, organized criminals, and drug traffickers on the run; with 
more barriers to American products coming down; with more people than 
ever living with the blessings of peace and democracy." 
 
The President and I look forward to working with this committee and this 
Congress in pursuit of the goals I know we have in common. 

(###) 
 
 
 
Article 4: 
 
Efforts To Implement the Cuban LIBERTAD Act 
Jeffrey Davidow, Acting Assistant Secretary For Inter-American Affairs 
Statement before the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere of the 
Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Washington, DC, July 30, 1996 
 
Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman. I am grateful for the opportunity to speak 
to your committee today concerning the Administration's efforts to 
implement the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity--LIBERTAD--Act.  
 
The Administration, and the State Department in particular, has been 
working hard to implement the provisions of the Libertad Act. We still 
have a great deal of work ahead of us, but I am pleased to say that the 
Act is already having a significant impact.  
 
The LIBERTAD Act was enacted in the wake of the shootdown of two U.S. -
registered Cessna aircraft by the Cuban military in February. So it 
would be appropriate to mention the United Nations Security Council's 
recently adopted resolution regarding that callous and unjustified act. 
The resolution endorses the conclusions of the International Civil 
Aviation Organization's--ICAO--report on the incident, which laid the 
blame for the shootdown on the Cuban Government's failure to observe 
international law and related provisions. While we would have preferred 
an even stronger condemnation of the Cuban Government's brutal conduct, 
we are pleased that the Security Council's resolution of last Friday 
characterizes the Cuban Government's conduct as unlawful and calls on 
Cuba to join other states in complying with international law.  
 
We will also continue to seek support for UN and other multilateral 
examinations of the human rights situation in Cuba. These resolutions 
increase pressure on the regime for reform and deny it the international 
legitimacy it so desperately seeks. We will be working vigorously over 
the next several months to focus international attention on the need for 
democratic change in Cuba and on the need for other countries to step up 
their efforts to bring this about. I will return to this subject later.  
 
In addition to augmenting our efforts to apply pressure on the Cuban 
Government for reform, the LIBERTAD Act supports our efforts to reach 
out to the Cuban people. Since the enactment of the Cuban Democracy Act 
in 1992, the U.S. Government has licensed over $125 million in private 
humanitarian aid to Cuba, mostly food and medicine from groups in the 
U.S. distributed through churches and non-governmental organizations on 
the island. The telecommunications agreements we licensed have 
dramatically improved communications between the U.S. and Cuba, 
including telephone, e-mail, and fax connections. This increased flow of 
information has strengthened ties between Americans and Cubans, 
strengthened non-governmental institutions that deliver aid, and helped 
to break the Castro regime's monopoly on information.  
 
We remain fully committed to the President's initiatives of October 6, 
1995, which were directed toward strengthening civil society on the 
island, and toward improving the flow of information through academic 
and educational exchanges. We are as convinced as ever that vibrant, 
independent non-governmental organizations will be necessary to the 
building of civil society in Cuba. The LIBERTAD Act provides language 
which more explicitly authorizes U. S. assistance to groups advocating 
change on the island. Our grant to Freedom House for activities in 
support of human rights activists on the island is just the first of a 
series of such efforts. I know that there has been considerable 
congressional interest in how such programs are conducted, and I look 
forward to consulting with you as we determine how we can most 
effectively support advocates of peaceful change on the island.  
 
Perhaps the best way to promote the growth of civil society in Cuba is 
by allowing U.S. civil society to establish contacts with it. Toward 
this end, we are licensing the sale and donation of communications 
equipment such as faxes, copiers, and computers to non-governmental 
organizations. We remain committed to licensing academic and cultural 
exchanges in such diverse fields as the environment, sports, and the 
arts. These programs will increase the Cuban people's exposure to 
American ideas and ideals in a focused way that will not provide an 
unwarranted hard currency windfall for the Cuban Government. We continue 
to license promising proposals from diverse U. S. organizations eager to 
share their energy and creativity with the Cuban people. While the Cuban 
Government has increased its efforts to isolate Cubans from fresh ideas 
from the outside, history suggests that it cannot stem the tide 
indefinitely. Those ideas will spread, and they will bring Cuba into its 
rightful place in our hemispheric family of democratic nations. The 
Cuban Government can--and I hope it will--allow such change to take 
place. Our course, however, is clear:  we must do all we can to hasten a 
peaceful process of transformation.  
 
Immediately after the President signed the LIBERTAD Act, the State 
Department and other federal agencies began working in earnest to 
implement its varied provisions as quickly and effectively as possible. 
These agencies have cooperated closely in carrying out this mandate. I 
will discuss our efforts to implement the Act's key provisions.  
 
The Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control would 
be better able to discuss on another occasion the Administration's 
efforts to implement Sections 102 and 103 of the Act, which call for 
improved enforcement of the comprehensive economic embargo. I would also 
leave to my colleagues in USIA to discuss, at an appropriate time, 
progress toward conversion of TV Marti to UHF. I believe that USIA has 
already submitted a report on that subject to the Congress.  
 
I will turn now to discuss the sections of the Act dealing with 
relations between Cuba and states of the former Soviet Union. President 
Yeltsin's re-election should ensure that the trend of the last few years 
toward a far more limited, market-based relationship with Cuba will 
continue. All Russian combat troops have been withdrawn from Cuba. 
Massive trade subsidies have been discontinued, and the bilateral 
economic relationship has dwindled. The Department has provided a report 
mandated by the Act on the withdrawal of Russian personnel from 
facilities in Cuba. We are monitoring the Russo-Cuban trade relationship 
to determine whether Russia is providing assistance to or engaging in 
non-market-based trade with Cuba. We are also investigating whether 
Russia may be providing assistance or credits to support the Lourdes 
intelligence facility. We do not believe that there are any serious 
efforts underway to complete the Jurugua nuclear power plant at this 
time, but we continue to carefully monitor the situation.  
 
We have submitted a report to Congress as mandated by Section 108 of the 
Act on commerce with, and assistance to, Cuba from other foreign 
countries. Much of this information was difficult to obtain, but the 
Administration drew from all available sources to put together the most 
complete report possible. I know that some here in Congress were 
disappointed that the report could not be made public, but in order to 
present a full picture of Cuba's economic relations with other countries 
it was necessary to draw from confidential sources which we are bound to 
protect.  
 
Title II of the LIBERTAD Act mandates the creation of a plan for 
assistance to transition and democratic Cuban Governments. The purposes 
of this plan are to 
  
1. ensure that the U.S. Government is adequately prepared to assist a 
new, democratically oriented government and,  
2. send a message of hope to reform-minded groups that the U.S. is eager 
to assist them in their efforts to bring Cuba into the hemisphere's 
family of democratic nations.  
 
The Administration is hard at work on this plan and will be consulting 
with Congress in the coming weeks and months as it nears completion. 
 
We are also preparing the report on expropriation claims issues called 
for in Section 207. We believe the conclusions of this plan will be 
important to bear in mind as we contemplate the kinds of assistance a 
new government will require in restoring prosperity to Cuba's crumbling 
economy and infrastructure.  
 
Titles III and IV of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity Act are 
aimed at increasing economic pressure on the Cuban Government and 
discouraging involvement, or "trafficking," in confiscated properties 
claimed by U.S. nationals. On May 17, the Department of Justice, in 
coordination with the Department of State, published a summary of the 
provisions of Title III in the Federal Register, as required by the Act. 
As you know, the President decided to allow Title III's private right of 
action to go into effect August 1. The three-month "grace period" in 
which "traffickers" will be able to avoid Title III liability by 
disengaging from confiscated U. S. properties will begin on that date. 
Once that grace period has expired, on November 1, liability will attach 
in situations where "trafficking" is taking place. This prospect, along 
with our serious implementation of Title IV, which I will discuss in a 
moment, will serve as a real deterrent to "trafficking" in such 
confiscated properties.  
 
The President also decided, however, to exercise the authority provided 
to him to suspend the right to bring actions under Title III for six 
months. He reported to the Congress, again as provided in the Act, that 
this suspension was necessary to the national interest and would 
expedite a transition to democracy in Cuba. The Administration believes 
that we should use the leverage that Title III creates to work with--
rather than against--our allies and trading partners to promote 
democratic change. The six-month suspension of the right to bring an 
action will give us the time we need to build closer cooperation with 
the EU and other partners. We know that other democratic nations share 
our goals for political and economic reform on the island; we also know 
that they can do more to achieve those goals.  
 
The President will be appointing a special envoy to lead the 
Administration's consultations with our allies. That envoy will consult 
with the Congress and non-governmental organizations about his or her 
mission. Among the areas of potential cooperation the envoy will discuss 
are increasing pressure on the Cuban Government for political and 
economic reform, better targeting of humanitarian assistance, increasing 
support to the groups that make up Cuba's nascent civil society, and 
promotion of business and labor practices that will bring democracy to 
the Cuban workplace. The EU has demonstrated its commitment to pressing 
for democratic change in Cuba by insisting on real progress on key 
reforms before proceeding with negotiations on a cooperation agreement. 
I am optimistic that we will be able to work with the EU, Canada, 
hemispheric neighbors, and other countries to increase international 
support for democracy for a people that deserves no less.  
 
As I mentioned earlier, the Administration has already initiated 
effective implementation of Title IV's authority to exclude 
"traffickers" from the United States. The Act charges the State 
Department with denying visas, and the Attorney General with denying 
entry, to foreign nationals who have been determined to be 
"traffickers," or corporate officers or principals of entities that have 
engaged in "trafficking," since March 12, 1996. The Administration 
published guidelines governing implementation of Title IV on June 17. 
The guidelines spell out procedures the Department of State will allow 
under Title IV, as well as some of the criteria that we will be using in 
assessing alleged "trafficking." In designing our procedures, we tried 
to balance the mandate of the Act for broad and speedy implementation 
with the need to provide transparency and minimize frictions with key 
U.S. allies whose nationals are affected by Title IV.  
 
Meanwhile, the Department, in cooperation with all relevant U.S. 
Government agencies, has been gathering information about suspected 
cases of "trafficking" since the Act's enactment on March 12. On May 29, 
the State Department sent advisory letters to three companies known to 
have been involved with confiscated U.S.-claimed properties prior to the 
enactment of the Act. In addition to notifying such companies about the 
Act's provisions, word of these letters also served notice to all 
investors in Cuba that the Administration is serious about implementing 
the Act. As a result, a significant number of companies with possible 
involvement in confiscated U.S.-claimed properties have informed the 
State Department that they are disengaging from those activities. Our 
discussions with these companies are continuing, and we will keep the 
Congress informed of developments.  
 
These foreign firms are not the only ones who will feel the impact of 
Title IV actions. The Cuban Government will undoubtedly find it more 
difficult to profit from expropriated sugar properties and properties 
claimed by U.S. nationals in other key sectors in the wake of Title IV 
implementation.  
 
While some firms are disengaging from expropriated U.S. properties on 
the island, some other firms have indicated their intention to remain in 
Cuba, engaged in activities which may fall under the purview of the 
Act's provisions. In those cases, we are committed to moving ahead with 
full enforcement of the law once we have sufficient information to 
warrant a determination. The State Department has just made its first 
determinations of "trafficking" under Title IV, and on July 10, sent 
letters to seven individuals who are corporate officers and members of 
the board of directors of a Canadian mining firm. Those individuals will 
be excluded from the United States 45 days from the date of those 
letters should they seek entry to this country, unless the company 
disengages from its "trafficking" in confiscated U. S. property or the 
individuals withdraw from their positions with the company. We are 
continuing to investigate other cases with a view toward early action in 
cases where there is sufficient information to warrant a determination 
of "trafficking" in accordance with the law. I am confident that these 
initial determinations will further discourage foreign investment or 
other arrangements involving U. S.-claimed properties in Cuba.  
 
Mr. Chairman, I have outlined the main elements of our implementation 
efforts to date. This has been an enormous project--and one that has 
strained the Department's resources, but one which we are committed to 
continuing. We have briefed interested staff members from both Senate 
and House committees about our progress on several occasions, so far, 
and look forward to doing so in the future. I think that working 
together we will achieve the goals of this legislation and of the 
Administration's overall policy toward Cuba: a peaceful transition to 
democracy.

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[END DISPATCH VOLUME 7, NO. 32]

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