Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I want to offer you the thanks and gratitude of the
United States for your leadership over the past weeks in
helping reach the September 28 decision to send 159
additional monitors, police advisors, and police
trainers to the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
We believe that important decision would not have been
possible without the Chair's guidance, patience, and
resolve.
We hope to hear welcome news today from the Secretary
General regarding the submission by delegations of
sufficient numbers of qualified experts to fill the 159
positions immediately. As soon as the staff is selected,
they should be deployed as rapidly as possible. Mr.
Chair and Mr. Secretary General, we urge that you keep
us informed on the status of the selection and
deployment of those staff.
To better assist in the effective redeployment of
national police, we would ask the Chair to consider
consulting with the Skopje Mission on the benefits of
offering OSCE human rights training to the redeploying
police units prior to their deployment. We also must ask
that an amnesty be in place before Government security
forces return to sensitive areas.
The United States also welcomes last week's agreement
between NATO and the Macedonian Government on conditions
for NATO's follow-on force that will support our
monitors and police advisors with additional security.
We look forward to the close cooperation and
coordination with NATO to ensure the mandates of our
mission and theirs are fulfilled, just as we look to the
Macedonian Government to ensure close coordination with
the OSCE and NATO as it moves forward.
The international community is clearly doing its part
to help. Now, political leaders in Macedonia must
fulfill completely their commitments, expressed in the
August 13 Framework Agreement. We urge the government
coalition leaders to move implementation forward in
parliament. We are concerned by delays in the
implementation of the Framework Agreement and hope to
see the Macedonian Assembly resume debate on the
constitutional amendments this week, bringing that
debate rapidly to a positive conclusion.
Thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
