USA: BILL CLINTON ON KOSOVO PEACE PLAN (2)

(4 Jun 1999) English/Nat Representatives of NATO and Yugoslavia will meet on Saturday to begin working out details of the withdrawal of Serb troops from Kosovo. At a White House ceremony on Friday afternoon, President Clinton said he's encouraged by the prospects for peace, and he said he hopes the negotiations will be handled professionally. The Pentagon says NATO's bombing campaign could end this weekend if Serbia cooperates but Clinton emphasised, there must be evidence of a Serb pullout. Speaking for the second time on Friday about the situation in Yugoslavia, President Clinton said he is encouraged by Yugoslavia's willingness to accept an international peace plan. Clinton made the comments at a White House ceremony honouring people with disabilities. He said for 72 days, the U-S and NATO have been engaged in a military campaign with three goals. They are the return of refugees to their homes, the withdrawal of Serb forces from Kosovo and an international monitoring force with NATO at its core. Clinton said he's pleased that Serb forces have apparently agreed to NATO's demands and he commended those responsible. SOUNDBITE: (English) "Russian Special Envoy Chernomyrdin and Finnish President Ahtisaari played instrumental and courageous roles in making this possible. I am grateful to them and so should all Americans be. Tomorrow military officials from NATO and Serbia will meet to work on the details of Serbian withdrawal from Kosovo. This is the next step for implementation of our conditions. I am pleased that it will take place and I hope the talks will proceed professionally and expeditiously." SUPER CAPTION: Bill Clinton, US President Earlier on Friday a Pentagon spokesman announced NATO could end its bombing as soon as Sunday, if Yugoslav military authorities cooperate with NATO's plan for the withdrawal of Serb troops from Kosovo. But Clinton warned, airstrikes will continue until NATO has proof that Slobodan Milosevic is complying with the alliance's terms. SOUNDBITE: (English) "As I said yesterday our diplomatic and military efforts will continue until we see Serb forces begin to withdraw in a full scale manner. Our experience in the Balkans teaches us that full peace can only come if progress in discussions is followed by progress on the ground." SUPER CAPTION: Bill Clinton, US President With prospects for peace just around the corner, Clinton said NATO's goal for a stable, prosperous and democratic Europe is certainly worth fighting for. SOUNDBITE: (English) "This is a goal which has been worth fighting for over the last weeks a goal which must be uppermost in our minds as we make sure our conditions must be met, a goal we must work for with steadfast determination in the months and in the years to come. I believe that the overwhelming majority of Americans share this goal. We do not want our children to grow up in a world that is dominated by people who believe they can kill innocent civilians because of the way they worship God or because of the way they were born." SUPER CAPTION: Bill Clinton, US President In spite of the accord NATO air strikes continued over Yugoslavia on Friday. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...