
			 THE WHITE HOUSE

		  Office of the Press Secretary
		     (Newport News, Virginia)

_________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release                              April 17, 1994



	     REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT UPON DEPARTURE

	 Newport News Williamsburg International Airport
		      Newport News, Virginia




10:25 A.M. EDT


	  THE PRESIDENT:  Ladies and gentlemen, I've received a
number of reports today on the situation in Bosnia.  I've also been
in touch today with President Yeltsin.

	  We don't have any definitive reports on the status of
Gorazde, but I can tell you that there has been some progress in the
negotiations between the United Nations and the Serbs.  Mr.  Akashi
has been working on it, Ambassador Redman and Mr. Churkin, and they
may have something to announce shortly.

	  I also -- I don't know that this has been made public or
not, but the Serbs released 16 Canadian soldiers, and we're working on
the release of the other UNPROFOR forces today.  So the situation is
still tense around Gorazde.  There is still some degree of uncertainty
there, but there has been, as of my latest report, which was just
about 10 minutes ago, some progress in the negotiations between the
U.N. and the Serbs on getting back to the negotiations and reducing
the tensions.

	  Q    What's the U.S. role been?

	  THE PRESIDENT:  Well, essentially, we've been -- Ambassador
Redman has been there.  He's been working very hard, especially for
the last seven hours, trying to hammer out an agreement that everybody
could live with, along with the U.N. and Mr. Churkin.

	  Secondly, we've worked very closely with the Russians trying
to think about what the end game might be, how we can work this out to
a successful conclusion over the long run.  And, of course, we're
still a very important part of the NATO Alliance, and we're committed
to doing whatever we're asked to do by General Rose.  But keep in
mind, except for the safe area around Sarajevo, our role in NATO has
been to provide close air support, or, if necessary, to protect the
UNPROFOR troops, the U.N.  troops, and where it's possible to do that.

	  So we have that role, but we also have this diplomatic role,
and we're doing our best to fulfill it.

	  Q Have there been any violations of the new truce since the
three-mile zone was agreed to?

	  THE PRESIDENT:  I don't want to comment on anything
definitively with regard to Gorazde, because we have been getting
reports over the last four and five hours, kind of mixed reports.  But
on balance, the last report I got was encouraging in terms of an
agreement impending between the U.N. and the Serbs.

	  Q Were the next reports, reports of tank incursions into
that zone?

	  THE PRESIDENT:  There's one, I think -- I think there was a
news report that there was at least one tank was sighted.  But I want
to say that we have no reports at the moment that the status of
Gorazde has changed.

	  Thank you.

	  Q    Is military action still possible?

	  THE PRESIDENT:  It depends on NATO.  It depends on what the
U.N. Commander on the ground, General Rose wants.  But their
conclusions were twofold.  One is that with regard to Gorazde itself,
it wouldn't necessarily be possible now for close air support to have
the desired military effect.  And, secondly, that they're trying to
get a negotiated agreement here that can serve as the basis not only
for relieving Gorazde, but for getting these peace talks back on
track.  So that's what we hope we're doing.

	  Q Are you considering actually easing the economic sanctions
on the Serbs?

	  THE PRESIDENT:  No.  Not based on anything that's happened
so far.  We have said to the Russians that if they want to discuss
that with us, that of course we would be willing to discuss it if
certain conditions on the ground were met.  But continued Serb
aggression on the ground, not only in Gorazde but everywhere else, is
hardly an encouragement to discuss that.  That's not even -- we can't
even begin discussions in the environment which has existed for the
last few days there.

	  THE PRESS:  Thank you.


			     END                 10:30 A.M. EDT 

