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Dole Blasts Clinton’s Bosnia Policy
‘The president has no idea how to get Americans out
By Michael Posner
PHILADELPHIA, June 26 (Reuters) - Republican presidential aspirant Bob Dole Tuesday accused President Clinton of "indecision, vacillation and weakness" in policy toward Europe and said this has hurt American interests. The former Senate majority leader blasted his Democratic opponent in a major foreign policy speech one day before Clinton leaves for a summit of world leaders in Lyon, France.
"America's interests are as compelling and as urgent as they were before the Berlin Wall was breached by the stronge forces of human yearning," Dole told several hundred people at the World Affairs Council of Philadelphia. "Yet President Clinton has persistently deferred to our allies and to Russians, subordinating American interests to the interests of a dubious or ineffective consensus," he added.
"That's not leadership," Dole said. "And that has harmed the interests of all of us -- Russian, European and American alike." In his speech, Dole called for enlargement of NATO and said he would oppose any Russian "veto of its expansion." He said Clinton has no policy for pulling out U.S. troops sent to Bosnia to implement a peace agreement.
"After hapahazardly getting into Bosnia, the president has no idea how to get Americans out or how to accomplish the mission they went to fulfill," Dole said. As a senator Dole favored letting Bosnians defend themselves by lifting an arms embargo, but in the end reluctantly backed Clinton's decision to send American troops.
Some 20,000 American troops are part of an international force in Bosnia implementing a peace agreement. Clinton has said their mission will end in December.
Tuesday's speech was Dole's second major attack on Clinton's foreign policy in as many months. Dole May 9 delivered a scathing attack on Clinton's policy toward Asia, especially its stance toward China, in much the same words. |
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