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U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing #38, 98-03-27

U.S. State Department: Daily Press Briefings Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The Department of State Foreign Affairs Network (DOSFAN) at <http://www.state.gov>


794

U.S. Department of State
Daily Press Briefing

I N D E X

Friday, March 27, 1998

Briefer: James B. Foley

STATEMENT
1		Decision by the Hevesi Committee Not To Impose Sanctions
		  Against Swiss Banks

FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA 1-2 President Milosevic's Decision Not to See Special Rep Gelbard 2-4 President Milosevic's Compliance with Contact Group Demands

PAKISTAN 4 Additional Security Precautions for US Diplomatic Missions

NIGERIA 5-6 US View re Return to Civilian Democratic Rule

CUBA 6-7 Ban Lifted on Cuban Baseball Players 7,12-13 Reported Resumption of Construction of Juragua Nuclear Plant 7 Prospects for Cuba's Return to the OAS 8 House Bill re Ineligibility for Aid for Countries that Aid Cuba

JAPAN 8 Fiscal Stimulus Announcement 8-9,12 Japan's Opening of Dialogue with Iran

INDIA 9 Prospects for India on UN Security Council

RUSSIA 9 Yeltsin Names New Prime Minister

CYPRUS 9-10 Accession of Cyprus to European Union

CHINA 10 Arrest in New York of Wang Bingzhang 10-11 Acting Under Secretary Holum re China and Non-Proliferation

MALAYSIA 11 Detention Camp Riots

MIDDLE EAST PEACE PROCESS 11-12 Update on Ambassador Ross' Travel to Region

MEXICO 12 Senate's Vote to Overturn Certification Decision


U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING

DPB #38

FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 1998, 1:20 P.M.

(ON THE RECORD UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED)

MR. FOLEY: This is not the normal Friday afternoon level of attendance; it's beautiful outside. I think we ought to adjourn. Can we do this outside under a tree? Just like in college with the professor and his acolytes.

I have no announcements. I'm going to post a statement concerning the meeting in New York City yesterday of the Hevesi Committee and the Swiss banks that Ambassador Eizenstat attended. But we'll post that after the briefing.

QUESTION: Milosevic wouldn't see Gelbard - what does the State Department think of this?

MR. FOLEY: Well, we think, first of all, that he's not getting the message, the message of the Contact Group.

QUESTION: (Inaudible.)

MR. FOLEY: I think Ambassador Gelbard --

QUESTION: -- Gelbard, too, he's not welcome in Belgrade because at first they said they wouldn't let him land and then they let him land and now they won't talk to him.

MR. FOLEY: I think Ambassador Gelbard did receive a message and can draw conclusions from President Milosevic's failure to see him; and that message is that he's not getting the message of the Contact Group. Clearly there is serious work to be done, which he is not addressing himself to. We have a month until the next Contact Group meeting. The Contact Group in Bonn this week decided to maintain the sanctions that were decided on March 9, to go forward with the arms embargo resolution, and to meet in one month to impose further sanctions if President Milosevic does not implement the demands of the Contact Group. This means that he's not off to a good start in the wake of the Bonn meeting.

Clearly, the essence of what the Contact Group has been calling for since March 9 -- there are a number of demands and requirements of the Contact Group, but if I had to define one that was paramount, it was that President Milosevic take personal responsibility for the process of political dialogue and an end to the repression. He's not taken that personal responsibility. We've seen that President Milutinovic has been forwarded as the interlocutor thus far with the international community, with the Kosovar Albanians and that's not sufficient. I think we all know who's in charge in Belgrade. And we hope that what Belgrade termed a scheduling problem does not recur because the clock is ticking over the next 30, 29 days until the next meeting of the Contact Group and there's not much time for him to get the message and begin an unconditional dialogue with the Kosovar Albanians.

QUESTION: Is there a message here for the Europeans, save Britain, who restrained the US and Britain from imposing tougher sanctions in Bonn? Did they miscalculate? I say, except for Britain and the US, the feckless four were reluctant to impose strong sanctions. Is there a message here for them?

MR. FOLEY: Without editorializing your question, I think that only time will tell whether President Milosevic gets the message in time for the next Contact Group meeting. Clearly, the Contact Group this week determined that his actions to date were not sufficient. Therefore, there was no decision to relax in any way the sanctions that were decided on March 9. As you know, in the days leading up to that meeting, there had been some talk in the air about carrots, about recognizing progress to date.

QUESTION: Not from the podium.

MR. FOLEY: Not from the United States, period. But they reached consensus, the members of the Contact Group, that while there were some steps taken, that they were insufficient - insufficient to justify any relaxation of sanctions, and insufficient to the point that the Contact Group is committed to apply new measures, punitive measures, in the next month if progress is not achieved.

QUESTION: There was another setback, or another snub, today, when Mr. Geremek went to see Milosevic. He asked for the Felipe Gonzalez, I guess, to be the mediator, and was told they didn't want an outsider. Do you have any comment on that?

MR. FOLEY: It's part and parcel of the same pattern of intransigence on the part of President Milosevic. We think he's making a serious mistake if he doesn't wake up and implement what has been called for by the international community in the form of the Contact Group.

QUESTION: But I'm not really clear whether, in fact, the Contact Group made this - wanted this. It's not in the second --

MR. FOLEY: Well, on March 9 in London, the Contact Group specifically called on the Belgrade authorities to cooperate with the OSCE. Contact Group members have endorsed former Prime Minister Gonzalez as the OSCE representative; in addition, he's been nominated as the EU representative to represent those organizations in an effort to help mediate a political solution to this crisis.

We can speak a lot about what was decided in London on March 9, what was decided this week in Bonn, and have a scorecard of what was implemented now, what was not implemented now, what may be implemented at the end of the 30- day period that Milosevic was given. But what I think is indisputable is that the prospects for Serbia and the FRY's integration into the world economy have been dealt a serious setback because of the events of the last month. I think we're already seeing anecdotal evidence that the prospects for investment in Serbian businesses have gone down.

I think the fact that on March 9, the Contact Group called for a moratorium on government-financed export credit support for trade and investment, including for privatizations, in Serbia is having a dramatic effect; that there is, in fact, an overall chilling effect both on the part of foreign investors who might have sought to invest in the Serbian economy, and on the part of Serbian would-be entrepreneurs as well. It has to be very demoralizing, the idea that because Serbia had cooperated in recent months with the international community in Bosnia over Dayton implementation. We had seen some prospect of possible further integration of Belgrade into the European and world economies; and that process has come to an abrupt halt and there's no prospect of it resuming, barring a complete change of attitude on the part of Belgrade insofar as Kosovo is concerned.

QUESTION: But was there a change of attitude by the Contact Group? I mean, they didn't mention this in the Bonn statement - that there should be a outside mediator in these talks. This couldn't have just been dropped out by accident.

MR. FOLEY: Well, they reaffirmed their demands that they made on March 9 in London, and that included cooperation with the OSCE. I can get the specific reference for you if you want, Roy.

QUESTION: I have it in front of me here. In other words, just that - but they didn't state it specifically. I mean, Milosevic has rejected this consistently - the entire government has - and the fact that the Contact Group didn't state it explicitly just sort of raises the question of whether they are explicitly demanding it or not.

MR. FOLEY: Well, I don't think I have the time right now to go through the Contact Group statement in Bonn. My understanding is that they did reaffirm Felipe Gonzalez as the OSCE representative in Kosovo. But we can look into that after the briefing.

QUESTION: Is this, in the United States' view, at least, then, an essential condition for genuine negotiations - that you have an outside mediator present?

MR. FOLEY: Yes, it is; it is. There are other essential conditions, one of which is the pull-back of the police units in Kosovo. Some false claims were made to that effect within the last week, which are not borne out by the facts on the ground. On the contrary, we're seeing a reinforcement of the position of Serb police - FRY police - in Kosovo.

QUESTION: Jim, I've got a question on the same region, which is Mr. Seselj is in the government. I don't know if you've had a comment on it, but apparently his forces have 15 of the 35 government portfolios. I'm just curious of what your reading is of that government

MR. FOLEY: Well, again, this is another question I received, each of which, alas, permits me to comment that authorities in Belgrade do not appear to be moving in the right direction towards political dialogue, reconciliation with the Kosovar Albanians, and a halt to the process of repression there. His appointment to the government is equally a step in the wrong direction.

QUESTION: Mr. Gelbard, in the past, has called him a fascist. Is this the view of the State Department?

MR. FOLEY: Well, I'm certainly not going to quarrel with Ambassador Gelbard's words. If he walks like one and talks like one, I think -

(Laughter.)

I'm not going to quibble with the characterization.

QUESTION: Pakistan - there's a great threat from terrorists to the US Embassy in Pakistan and also against Americans. Also, this threat is equivalent 1979, when four Americans were killed.

MR. FOLEY: I'll get you that. I have an answer somewhere in my book, which is not leaping to - thank you, PA. Public Affairs.

We have taken additional security precautions in Pakistan, at our missions in Pakistan. It's obviously not our policy to discuss security measures in a public forum, but our overseas missions constantly review their security postures and take additional measures when needed. We received some information regarding a possible threat to our diplomatic missions in Pakistan.

We receive threat information on our diplomatic missions all the time, frankly, and that threat is always taken seriously. We take precautions to counter these threats, to ensure the safety of our personnel and the security of our facilities; and that's what we've done today in Pakistan. But we have no specific threat information directed against American citizens as such in Pakistan at this time.

The information we received was specific to US diplomatic missions in Pakistan, and security measures, as I said, have been taken to counter this threat.

QUESTION: Anything to do with the civil war in Afghanistan or Mir Kasi's death penalty in the US?

MR. FOLEY: Well, I don't have the information before me of the nature of the security threat involved. But if I had that information, I would not be in a position to share it with you, either.

QUESTION: Jim, are you prepared to answer any questions on Nigeria, to the extent that there was news today in South Africa. I think it was when the President said that it was okay if President Abacha is elected as a civilian in the upcoming elections. This appeared to contrast with the previous line - that being that "Nigeria needs and deserves a real transition to democracy and civilian rule, not another military regime dressed up in civilian clothes." This was, as I understand it, Susan Rice, of two weeks ago.

MR. FOLEY: That continues to be the case. There was some misreporting - at least wire service misreporting - what the President actually said. But what I can tell you is that we are encouraging reform and democratic principles in Nigeria, and we hope for a free and fair process to elect a credible civilian government. The Abacha regime currently shows no signs of living up to its commitment in this regard.

The President stated very clearly that our objective is a return to true civilian, democratic rule. True civilian, democratic rule means a process that includes free political activity, release of political prisoners, freedom of the press and free, fair and transparent elections. The current transition process appears to be flawed and failing.

What Assistant Secretary Rice said stands; which is that a military dictatorship in civilian clothes is not acceptable. In other words, it is not sufficient for a general simply to remove his uniform and declare himself a civilian. The process itself has to have integrity and not be manipulated. We've consistently urged that the regime honor its own commitment to make a genuine transition to civilian, democratic rule.

QUESTION: The President said, "and if he stands for election, we hope he will stand as a civilian." That seems to be - gives Abacha some wiggle room there.

MR. FOLEY: I don't think so; I think that's to misinterpret our position. What we are looking for is for Mr. Abacha to make good on his pledge, which is a credible, free and open process.

QUESTION: (Inaudible.)

MR. FOLEY: To suggest that anything that is going on in Nigeria today is tantamount to the beginnings of a free, fair electoral process - credible electoral process - is really illusory and unfounded. It's just really very hypothetical at this point, in the absence of some of the things that I talked about: the release of political prisoners; freedom of the press; a free and fair electoral process -- that, in actuality, the candidacy of a military man would be anything but a superficial changing of uniform. We'd have to see some really significant change in the context of what's happening in Nigeria before we could bless something like that.

QUESTION: I want to read you briefly two quotes. "Let me state clearly and unequivocally that an electoral victory by any military candidate in the forthcoming presidential election in Nigeria would be unacceptable." That was Susan Rice.

"There are many military leaders who have taken over chaotic situations in African countries that have moved toward democracy, and that can happen in Nigeria." That was Bill Clinton. Do you really think that's two articulations of the same policy?

MR. FOLEY: If we were to see the changes in Nigeria that we called for, and I enumerated - the release of political prisoners, true freedom of the press, free political activity, free, fair and transparent elections -- and this gentleman were able to participate in such a process, I think it would be surprising to most observers that he would stand a chance of winning elections in such a process.

QUESTION: It sounds as if you're talking about Fidel Castro.

(Laughter.)

MR. FOLEY: Well, we are calling for a similar process in Cuba, indeed. And I think Mr. Castro's failure to open up to such a process reveals a certain lack of confidence on his part.

QUESTION: What you're saying and what the President said are not necessarily different - which the President mis-said, are not necessarily different.

MR. FOLEY: Well, I don't accept that.

QUESTION: So you're saying that if he meets your standards and runs as a civilian, which you doubt he can do, then it's fine.

MR. FOLEY: I'm saying that that - I'll give you my answer to that - I'm saying that that is wildly hypothetical, at this point, in the absence of any context of movement of the opening up of the political system in Nigeria.

QUESTION: But you are not saying flatly that you do not want Abacha to run for president; you're saying that if he meets these conditions, which you say is wildly hypothetical, it's fine.

MR. FOLEY: I'm saying that that prospect is wildly hypothetical.

QUESTION: Castro has given some kind of relief to the professional baseball players in Cuba. Do you think that is because of the Pope's visit, or the special treatment the United States gives to the baseball players of Cuba to earn a lot of money in this country?

MR. FOLEY: I think that it reflects the fact that, perhaps, the Cuban Government has discovered that its practice of banning players from baseball for suspicion of planning to defect has backfired for them. The baseball players who left Cuba last week and those who left in late December had all been banned from playing baseball in Cuba because of suspicions that they were planning to defect; and, of course, they left the island anyway.

The policy of banning players from baseball is a clear example of the Cuban Government's use of harassment and intimidation to prevent the Cuban people from freely exercising individual rights, including the right to work. Now, in terms of their announcement that they will stop sending baseball players abroad on government contracts, it has been the practice of the Cuban Government routinely to send skilled individuals, including baseball players, other athletes and coaches, medical doctors, teachers and others abroad on government contracts as a source of hard currency for the government. All such travel is arranged by the government, and the individuals keep only a modest amount of what they earn. The Cuban Government apparently has decided to forego sending baseball players abroad as a source of earnings for the government.

QUESTION: There is an official from the White House who's name is Richard Morningstar. Yesterday he confirmed that Ukraine and Russia send material and specialties to continue the construction of the Juragua plant in Cuba. And he said that the United States is talking with the Russians and the Ukrainians, trying to tell them that the US is going to impose sanctions to them if they continue to send materials and specialties to Juragua.

MR. FOLEY: Yes, I heard about that story before I came in here and I checked and our experts are unaware of any such initiative as you described. The United States though, I can tell you, is opposed to the completion of the plant. We have made known our concerns repeatedly to countries whose firms were considering participation in the completion of the project.

QUESTION: There was today in Argentina another initiative to bring Cuba into the Organization of the American States by the Secretary General of the OAS. And I think there are other countries also that would favor for Cuba to come back into the OAS. Do you have anything?

MR. FOLEY: I believe that Cuba was never formally excluded from the OAS, but their participation was suspended back, I think, in 1962. The United States believes the conditions have not changed in terms of the lack of democracy in Cuba to justify a change in our opposition to Cuba's return to the OAS.

QUESTION: In other words you're trying to - (inaudible) - over 33 countries and the OAS?

MR. FOLEY: I didn't hear the question.

QUESTION: Do you say the United States doesn't feel that Cuba needs to be reinstated as a participant in the OAS. That means you are going to vote against over 33 countries that, I mean, the majority of Latin American countries now feel that Cuba needs to be working with the inter-American group.

MR. FOLEY: Well, our view is different. That's all I can tell you.

QUESTION: (Inaudible) - the foreign minister at the Vatican today about the humanitarian --

MR. FOLEY: No, I didn't.

QUESTION: (Inaudible.)

MR. FOLEY: You'd have to tell me what he said. You'd have to ask me a question that directed me in the direction of --

QUESTION: He seemed to be rejecting the whole idea - the measures that were announced by the President to alleive humanitarian hardship. I don't know if he's in a position to do anything, but, I mean --

MR. FOLEY: Maybe it's not out of character, but I'd have to say it would be surprising if the Cuban Government opposed measures that were intended to provide humanitarian relief to the people of Cuba. It's not out of character, but it never ceases to amaze.

QUESTION: (Inaudible) - in the House saying that countries that help Cuba will not be eligible for American aid. Is it going to create any problems with South Africa, for instance? Mandela said today, yesterday that he is still supporting Cuba.

MR. FOLEY: I've not seen the report and I'm certainly not even aware of such --

QUESTION: This was yesterday.

QUESTION: A little while ago, Secretary Albright called Japanese Foreign Minister Obuchi to discuss the need to boost the Japanese economy; and as of yesterday, the Japan ruling party approved the economic stimulus package. What's your reaction on that?

MR. FOLEY: Well, we believe it's encouraging that Japan is taking steps towards stimulating domestic demand. We were lacking details on that announcement.

(Phone rings.)

Tell them I'm busy.

(Laughter.)

We look forward, therefore, to further elaboration of the specific measures involved and we'll have to await the substantive details before we can give a broader assessment of the new Japanese package.

QUESTION: On Iran, the Japanese Government is resuming a government-to- government dialogue with Iran by sending a high-ranking politician to Iran next month. What's your reaction to that?

MR. FOLEY: Well, as you know, the United States itself has called for an open dialogue, official authorized dialogue with Iran and we don't oppose the dialogue that other nations may have with Iran. We simply state in such cases that we trust that our close friends and allies will make clear to the government of Iran our continuing concerns, shared by our friends and allies, over specific aspects of Iranian activities of concern to us.

QUESTION: Several US lawmakers have called on the (inaudible) to support India's desire to join the UN Security Council. Now, what's the problem? Why is the US not supporting the world's largest democracy to join the world body's security council?

MR. FOLEY: Well, we announced our position on Security Council reform back last year at some point; and as part of our position, I can refer you to the text of what we said at the time, though. We favored that different regions of the world would be able to nominate members of the Security Council on a rotating basis and that continues to be our position.

QUESTION: Do you have any comment on the US congressmen calling now on the - (inaudible) - to support?

MR. FOLEY: Well, we stand by the position that we announced last year, but we will be happy to look at any proposals coming out of Congress, I'm just not aware of it.

QUESTION: Yeltsin has formally named Kiriyenko as his prime minister. I was wondering if you had a general comment, and specifically these concerns about his age, the fact that he lacks experience. I mean, would that not prompt concerns, for instance, with US investors, that this guy is actually up for the job?

MR. FOLEY: Well, he is youthful. He is 35 years old - a former fuel and energy minister. That's undeniable, Carole. But he's a man with some fairly remarkable experience, given his age. Before joining the Russian Government, he founded a commercial bank and he also headed an oil refinery. I would note also that Mr. Kiriyenko participated in the US-Russia Joint Commission on Economic and Technological Cooperation here in Washington earlier this month. So he seems to be a dynamic gentleman who has a reputation as a vigorous supporter of the general policies of economic reform, supported by President Yeltsin. So we look forward to working with him and his government if, indeed, they are confirmed.

QUESTION: You've dealt with him through this forum?

MR. FOLEY: Yes, we have.

QUESTION: Ambassador Holbrooke, when he was in Bonn, he said that the European acceptance of Cyprus is the biggest obstacle in the solution. Is that his view, or do you share this view?

MR. FOLEY: I've not seen that comment, so I couldn't comment on it. But our view has been that the accession of Cyprus to the European Union - which, of course, will take some time and must proceed through a process of negotiations -- but that prospect can be a positive catalyst in a settlement of the disputes that separate the communities on Cyprus. So we continue to hold that view.

QUESTION: But on the - (inaudible) - for example, the Turkish side that doesn't accept any negotiations, any dialogue on it. It means that this will collapse; am I right or wrong?

MR. FOLEY: Well, that's unfortunate. I believe that there are prospects, and the United States is not going to endorse any particular formula, I would hasten to add. But there are prospects. One can envisage a possibility of a joint delegation that meets the needs and the desires of all of the people on Cyprus. We hope that there will be an effort and a will on all sides to cooperate - such that a joint delegation of some kind can be agreed to and can participate in the EU accession talks.

QUESTION: Chinese pro-democracy activist, Mr. Wang Binzhang has been detained for investigations into his forgery of an American passport. Can you confirm on that; and also, where are we in these investigations?

MR. FOLEY: Well, if you want an answer to where the investigation is, you'll have to ask the New York - the US Attorney's office in New York City. I can, indeed, confirm that the gentleman was arrested last night, March 26, in New York by special agents of the Diplomatic Security Service on charges related to passport fraud. He is scheduled to be arraigned in New York later today. As the case is now before the courts, however, I have no further comment that I could possibly make.

QUESTION: What is his current visa status? Will he face criminal charges, or will the United States Government give him a special parole because he is like Wei Jengsheng, a pro-democracy activist, unwelcome in China?

MR. FOLEY: First of all, I believe that the gentleman is a US immigrant - a legal, permanent resident of the United States. In terms of any possible criminal charges, I'd refer you to the US Attorney in New York City. I can't comment on the investigation.

QUESTION: Mr. Holum, the Under Secretary of State, said in Beijing that the United States is satisfied with China, that Beijing has kept its words on the nuclear nonproliferation. Does that mean that President Clinton is ready to offer China access to missile technology on his trip to Beijing?

MR. FOLEY: Well, we've had a series of articles that have appeared in the media in Washington - one based on allegedly leaked secret documents; secondly, the astonishing publication of an allegedly secret document; and all kinds of follow-up articles and speculation in this regard - none of which bear any resemblance to the truth or to the facts.

It's interesting to go forward with publishing an allegedly secret document, claiming a smoking gun, in effect, that just wasn't there. I cannot state clearly enough that the United States is not proposing any offers of access to missile technology. The report is flat wrong.

QUESTION: Before US and China signed treaty on nuclear issues, is China going to pledge already to accept US position that it will not sell any kind of technology, especially missile, to Pakistan, Libya, Iran and other countries?

MR. FOLEY: Well, we are, of course, always concerned about any reports of the transfer of such technology to other nations. We are vigilant in assessing such reports. We don't have indications that there's been any deviation from commitments that we have from Chinese authorities in this regard.

QUESTION: Can I ask about a Malaysia/Indonesia story? Apparently there's been these riots in Malaysia of Indonesian refugees and threats of deportations. I'm wondering of the United States, through the embassy there, has intervened in any way with the Malaysian Government in the situation.

MR. FOLEY: Yes, we are concerned about reports of violence in Malaysian detention camps. We understand that there have been at least nine fatalities, including eight Indonesian migrants and one Malaysian police officer. There were also a number of injured people, including 38 Malaysian police. We deeply regret the loss of life.

We believe that governments should act judiciously in carrying out the return of illegal migrants, and that such action should take into account the safety and dignity of the individuals involved, and also be consistent with the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

I would note our belief that all governments do have a sovereign right to restrict rights of entry and residence to individuals of another country, while assuring appropriate protection for any bona fide asylum seekers. But we don't have a definitive account of what happened the other day.

QUESTION: How was Ambassador Ross' consultation going?

MR. FOLEY: Well, he spoke with Secretary Albright on the phone this morning. She told me that Ambassador Ross reports that he's hard at work. She also indicated that now was not the moment to characterize the course of his negotiations. She'd prefer that he have the opportunity to come back and report to her and the President. We'll have more to say at that time.

QUESTION: Do you have any comment on the decision of --

MR. FOLEY: Just a second. You're not going to get much out of me, Roy.

QUESTION: No, but when do you expect him to come back?

MR. FOLEY: I don't have that. If I can find that out, I'll let you know this afternoon.

QUESTION: You used the word just now, "negotiations." Is that the word you want to stick with - that he's having negotiations with the parties?

MR. FOLEY: I suppose that was imprudent. I think that he's in consultation, is the correct terminology. You'd be a better spokesman than I, Roy.

QUESTION: Is that it? Do you know - (inaudible) --

MR. FOLEY: I don't have that. I can check on that for you, if you'd like.

QUESTION: Can I go to the last question on Iran and Japan? Does the Japanese Government decision to send - Europe is also moving towards dialogue with Iran. For instance, the Italian Foreign Minister has already gone to Iran. Now the Japanese Government is sending a politician to Iran to talk with the Iranian Government. Does that change the US policy towards Iran?

MR. FOLEY: No, I think I made that very clear - that we hope that nations that do have a dialogue with Iran use those dialogues to convey our common areas of concern. We think that if we had the opportunity of an official, authorized dialogue with Iranian authorities, that we, too, would have an opportunity to put on the table our areas of concern. The Iranian authorities would be able to table their areas of concern with the United States, and that through such an official dialogue, that we might actually achieve progress in the relationship, in addressing areas of concern and helping Iran to reintegrate into the international community, which is, I think, the goal that all of us share.

QUESTION: Do you have any comment on the decision of the Senate to maintain the certification on Mexico that President Clinton gave to the country?

MR. FOLEY: Yes, we're pleased with the vote in the Senate. Both the United States and Mexico realize that more needs to be done on both sides of the border to thwart the flow and abuse of drugs. So there is no resting on our laurels on either side of the border. However, we do believe that cooperation and not confrontation is the best approach in this case.

It was the Administration's position that Mexico had fully cooperated with the United States in the fight against drug trafficking. We are, as I said, pleased that the Senate took the same position.

QUESTION: One last question on Cuba. Why is the United States opposed to the completion of the Juragua power plant?

MR. FOLEY: We have concerns that have to do with safety, regarding that plant. The lack of adequate safeguards is a primary concern. It's not the only one, though, given the nature of Castro's political regime.

QUESTION: Two of the highest-level PKK officials --

MR. FOLEY: Just one second.

QUESTION: Carole asked the question I was going to ask.

MR. FOLEY: Well, I think we've made clear overall, in this case we have concerns about safeguards and that really is first and foremost. But as a general rule though, we discourage investment in Cuba; we discourage economic activity in Cuba until Cuba has undertaken significant political reforms.

QUESTION: Two of the highest-level PKK officials (inaudible) Barzani troops or groups in Northern Iraq. Do you have any information that this terror organization is falling apart?

MR. FOLEY: I'm sorry, I didn't get the whole question.

QUESTION: The PKK terrorist organization --

MR. FOLEY: But I think it's a question I'll have to research and get you an answer for after the briefing.

QUESTION: Okay.

MR. FOLEY: Thank you.

(The briefing concluded at 2:00 P.M.)


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