U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing, 01-08-30

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

Richard Boucher, Spokesman

Washington, DC

August 30, 2001

INDEX:

DEPARTMENT
1-3, 19, 20Foreign Service Exam Enrollment; State Department’s Role in Soltys Murder Case; Reich Hearing Before Senate Foreign Relations Committee
BULGARIA AND ROMANIA
4-5       Embassy Closures
CHINA
5-6       Export of Missile Technology from China; Export Control Systems
ISRAEL / PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY
6-10, 15  Secretary Powell’s Role in Peace Process / Withdrawal from Beit Jala; Telephone Conversations; Abu Ali Mustafa Killing
PERU
10, 17-18 Judicial Assistance in Investigation of Massacres; Human Rights Violations During Fujimori Administration.
LATIN AMERICA
10-11     Under Secretary Grossman’s Travel to Mexico and Colombia
MEXICO
11        Visas for Temporary Workers
AUSTRALIA
11-12     Situation Update on Norwegian Freighter Carrying Refugees
SOUTH AFRICA
13        Deputy Assistant Secretary Southwick’s Travel to Durban
AFGHANISTAN
13-15     Update on Detention of Aid Workers
EAST TIMOR
15        Reports on Elections and Comments by Assistant Secretary Kelly
FIJI
15-16     Discussion of Fijian Elections
MACEDONIA
16-17     Update on Weapons Collection and Travel of Lord Robertson
THE HAGUE
17        Update of Slobodan Milosevic Trial on Possible Genocide Charges
THE CAUCASUS
18-19     Assistant Secretary Jones’ Travel / Possibility of Elections in Nagorno-Karabakh / Role of the Minsk Group in Election Process
SAUDI ARABIA
19        Arrest of Christians in Jeddah
TAIWAN
19        Resumption of Talks with China
INDIA
20        Comments on the Role of the Indo-American Community

MR. BOUCHER: Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. If I can, I'd like to take a minute or two at the top to tell you about the registrations for the Foreign Service Exam. Registration closed last night at the end of August 29th, and so we have the final tally for you, and we are very, very pleased to note that more than 23,500 people have registered for the Foreign Service Exam that is going to be given on September 29th. This is nearly twice the number of registrants as we had in the year 2000.

Preliminary data from this registration also show an increase in the share of minority registrants to about 35 percent of all the people who registered for the exam. This is the highest percentage of minority registrants in the history of the State Department's Foreign Service intake process. African American registration nearly tripled over last year to over 3,000. Hispanic registration doubled to over 2,000.

This increase is a result of an Administration supported hiring drive, including a targeted minority recruitment effort to hire 1,433 new career personnel in Fiscal Year 2002 for both Foreign and Civil Service positions. Following a 10-year decline, the current totals represent a return to the high registration numbers of the 1980s, with a major change within the demographics represented by doubling of the minority representation.

So we are very pleased to see that. This is a project that we have been engaged in for a couple months now, to increase the number of registrants, and we will keep moving forward to try to make sure everybody shows up, takes the exam and then we get the best possible people to serve our country in the Foreign Service.

QUESTION: There was a startling high number a few months ago of vacancies in the Foreign Service. Do you happen to have handy some estimate of -- because you are way below your normal operating quota, I understood.

MR. BOUCHER: I don't -- I will go back and double-check this. There was a number that was basically the decline in jobs that we had, the decline in people that we had over a number of years, that we lost personnel because we weren't able to hire at replacement rates. And this exam is important, one, because it shows that people are still interested in joining our ranks and serving their country as Foreign Service Officers; but also, this is important because we are at a point now with new budgets and a hiring authority where we can actually start staffing our missions and staffing our Foreign Service more completely.

QUESTION: Richard, to what do you attribute this? Do you attribute this to the Secretary's very public statements about it, the new Internet site, or to you and Phil getting up here every -- about twice a week and saying, register?

MR. BOUCHER: Well, I certainly attribute it to Phil Reeker and his efforts in this regard. I do think that Secretary of State Powell has a considerable amount to do with it. As you know, we did a targeted advertising campaign using the Secretary's picture. The phrase is, I think, "This man wants you to work for him." And we did an ad campaign.

I would attribute this to the fact that we have, for the first time in a long, long time, and probably more than ever before, gone out to publicize the exam, gone out to get people to sign up, gone out and told people we want them.

QUESTION: What, did you go to colleges?

MR. BOUCHER: There were ads in college newspapers, there were ads in targeted publications. There was a new Internet site set up so that people could easily get there, find out the information and register on-line, which is, I think, considerably easier than the way it was when some of us took the exam many years ago.

QUESTION: Can the exam be taken in various parts of the country?

MR. BOUCHER: Yes, it is done all over the world. I took mine in Guinea, I think it was. Our embassies can make arrangements, too. So it is done all over the country, on college campuses and elsewhere, and it is done all over the world as appropriate and necessary, depending on who is out there. A lot of Peace Corps volunteers used to take it, I know. And it is done -- I think we are looking at twice a year. I think we do this again in April.

QUESTION: Richard, what is the number of Asians in the Foreign Service here at the State Department?

MR. BOUCHER: I don't have that for you right now. I will try to look and see.

QUESTION: Have the numbers increased or declined, or --

MR. BOUCHER: I don't know, I don't know precisely. I will have to check.

QUESTION: Well, how come they are low numbers? Because you are not advertising among the Asian communities?

MR. BOUCHER: I didn't -- if you are asking me how many, and then you are asking me how come they are so low, there seems to be a little leap that you have made there that I am not prepared to make with you right now. Let me find out what the numbers are for Asia.

QUESTION: Because I did -- I investigated, and (inaudible) because --

MR. BOUCHER: I will be glad to get you the numbers and tell you what they mean.

QUESTION: I have not seen a single ad from the State Department in any Asian community newspaper, including mine, The India Globe. (Laughter.)

MR. BOUCHER: Well, you can have your -- (laughter) -- I will give you -- I will let your advertising department give us a call, and we will see if we can negotiate an appropriate --

QUESTION: Richard, can I ask, did you give a breakdown of --

QUESTION: I'm sorry, but I am not --

MR. BOUCHER: Hang on. We've got another question here.

QUESTION: Just to follow --

MR. BOUCHER: Let's go to that.

QUESTION: This is an actual real question. Did you give a breakdown of the number of people from the military? I mean, there was a special effort made, starting a couple of weeks ago, in your list of -- you talked about the minorities, but did you talk about ex-military, or --

MR. BOUCHER: No, I didn't. I will see if I can get that, too. We did look at former military people as one good source of people for us to help us run and staff our operations.

QUESTION: Minorities, you mean racial, don't you?

QUESTION: I just want to say that I have one Indian-American diplomat who is in one of the US embassies in Africa. She had very high praise for the State Department and the work she is doing. And I am doing a story next week on her, and I just want you to know that she is very happy in the Foreign Service.

MR. BOUCHER: That's wonderful. Thank you.

QUESTION: Are minorities racial or ethnic? But then, it's not gender, is it?

MR. BOUCHER: No, we are talking about African American and Hispanic there. I will see if we have a breakdown by gender as well.

QUESTION: Okay. Could we ask about the temporary --

MR. BOUCHER: You may ask about whatever you want.

QUESTION: -- embassies, Bulgaria? Status?

MR. BOUCHER: Bulgaria and Romania, what we are doing in our embassies there? Sure. What we are not doing in our embassies there, I guess is the answer.

Our US embassies in Bucharest, Romania and Sofia, Bulgaria are closed to the public today in order to review their respective security postures. I am not in a position to go into detail on this. I would say that American citizens who need emergency services can phone these embassies and get through to people who can help them. Each post will look at its security posture and reopen at an appropriate time. I can't speculate at this moment on when that might be.

I would remind you once again that the Worldwide Caution that we put out on June 22nd does indicate that posts may temporarily suspend operations or close to the public in response to threat information, security concerns or simply to review their security postures. And that is what we have done in this case.

I would also note that both embassies have used the warden networks that they have to notify American citizens in the area of these closures.

QUESTION: The Worldwide Caution of June 22nd goes on at length about Usama bin Laden and his various activities and threats. Is there any link in this case?

MR. BOUCHER: I can't discuss in detail the reasons for this review of the security postures, but I would not draw that conclusion automatically.

QUESTION: Is it fair to say, Richard, that they came under threat? That there was information that led them to believe that the embassies were in danger?

MR. BOUCHER: That would be a good reason to review your security postures. I think I could say that there is information about possible threats against these embassies that made them want to -- as they reviewed it with their embassy emergency action committees -- that made them decide that they wish to close for public operations while they reviewed the status of their security posture.

QUESTION: But the latest -- well, when the latest State Department warning came out -- not the June one, but the one that has happened since -- there was something that said that embassies -- US interests in the Arabian Peninsula were under imminent threat of attack. Is that still in place?

MR. BOUCHER: I believe so. I believe that is still extant, and I would have to check on the exact status.

QUESTION: Can you say if the closing of these embassies is linked to the situation in the Middle East? The Israelis and the Palestinians?

MR. BOUCHER: No, I can't say that.

QUESTION: Would you care to add a line in about the -- what is, I'm sure, the excellent cooperation that you have with the authorities in both Bulgaria and Romania? Or no? Maybe you can't.

MR. BOUCHER: In both -- I did read the cables in from the embassies, and they are working with the local authorities, and I think they are getting excellent support. The cables that came in were just as they began to evaluate the situation and look at the threat, look at what they had to do. And I am sure they will be working with the local governments positively, productively and constructively as they put in place whatever measures they think are necessary.

QUESTION: Can I ask you something? While you were away, maybe a week or so ago, the notion that Chinese firms were providing or proliferating technology unwisely to places like Pakistan and Iraq, the bottom line was, you know, mixed results, we're not sure. You talked to the Chinese, but we didn't -- you didn't come down publicly -- at least the State Department -- with results, with definite conclusions.

I noticed today in stories about Iraq, or at least our story about Iraq, that their air defense seems to have been improved, and Rumsfeld is saying, because of fiber optics, that they got it from Chinese firms, which of course occasions me to ask you if there is anything further to be said about that review of whether the Chinese firms are adhering to the agreement they reached with the US -- when, in November, I think?

MR. BOUCHER: Well, there's two different things here. There was an understanding last November on missiles, and missile technology, that the Chinese would make sure that there were no exports of missiles or missile technology from China of a certain kind to any country.

And the Chinese said that they were going to put in place certain export control systems to do that. That was a subject of discussion when the Secretary was in Beijing. It was a subject of further discussion about a week ago -- the 23rd of August, if I remember -- in meetings with the Chinese, and there is nothing further to say on that since those particular discussions.

On the second issue, we discussed earlier this year the demarches we have made to China about some activities of Chinese firms in Iraq that we were concerned about, that had not gotten the approval of the sanctions committee. And I think we reported to you earlier in this -- about the springtime -- that the Chinese had told us they would abide by the UN sanctions, that they were committed to that, and they would continue to do that.

I avoided at the time trying to specify exactly what we knew about what Chinese companies might have been doing in Iraq. I will see if there is anything new that we can say or not say on the subject at this point.

QUESTION: Has the US issued any other demarches to China since the spring on this matter?

MR. BOUCHER: I just talked about two matters. Do you have a "this matter" to discuss?

QUESTION: Oh, on Iraq -- on the -- yes.

MR. BOUCHER: On the question of UN sanctions on Iraq? I’ll check and see if there’s anything else we can do.

QUESTION: Can we move on?

MR. BOUCHER: Yes.

QUESTION: Can you give us -- tell us exactly what the Secretary’s role was, if there was any, in the Israeli withdrawal from this town whose name that I can remember --

MR. BOUCHER: Let me --

QUESTION: -- how to pronounce?

MR. BOUCHER: Beit Jala.

QUESTION: Right.

MR. BOUCHER: Let me start by saying that we are encouraged that the Israelis have withdrawn their troops from Beit Jala. We think it’s particularly important that the Israelis and Palestinians were able to resolve this problem directly. We think now it is critical that the situation there remain calm. In this regard we expect the Palestinian Authority to do everything possible to ensure that there will be no shooting from Beit Jala and the surrounding areas. At the same time, we encourage both sides to work closely to resume security cooperation, which we think is a key element in ending the violence, and to move towards implementation of the Mitchell Committee recommendations.

The Secretary yesterday spoke -- ended up speaking twice with Prime Minister Sharon, twice with Chairman Arafat and twice with Foreign Minister Peres, as well, in the situation there. He talked to them about the need to maintain calm. He talked with the Israeli side about the need to withdraw. And I think most of this sort of played out in public. The Israelis said, we will withdraw if they stop shooting. The Palestinians said, if they withdraw, we will stop shooting.

The Secretary was able to get back to each of them and said, okay, he'll do this, he'll do that, and help them work this out in a way that showed that each side could do something for the other. And the Secretary tried to be helpful in that process. But I think it does show that they can take steps. They can take steps to stop the shooting. They can take steps to reestablish calm after a situation has broken out. And that is a very positive development. To the extent that we can be helpful to that, we will.

And as we have always said when we get all questions about personal engagement by the Secretary, when he can be involved and help something happen, he will do so. He did.

QUESTION: May I try and clarify something. As I understand it, the timeline of these calls goes that the Secretary spoke with Chairman Arafat in the morning, before the Chairman had spoken with Peres and they reached this agreement. And then the agreement was reached, then he spoke with Peres and Sharon sometime in the afternoon. And then before they went into the cabinet meeting at which they decided to withdraw. And then immediately after the cabinet meeting, Sharon called the Secretary. And then the Secretary called Arafat to tell him that Sharon had -- that the Israeli cabinet agreed to withdraw --

MR. BOUCHER: If the shooting stopped.

QUESTION: If the shooting was stopped. So my question is, when was the second call to Peres? Was that --

MR. BOUCHER: I can't place it. You've done a better job than I in sort of placing it vis-à-vis cabinet meetings. The two calls to Peres were sort of both in the middle. It was Arafat, Sharon, Peres, Peres, Sharon, Arafat was the sort of -- the sequence of all the calls.

QUESTION: I believe that Peres --

MR. BOUCHER: With some moments in between.

QUESTION: Your description -- you described, generally, the problem. And is that what he dealt with? Or was he drawn into -- I almost want to say minutiae into how -- we all know how detailed these things can get. Did he get into the nitty-gritty of this? Or -- not simply -- or did he concentrate on making sure each felt he could go ahead and the other would do the right thing?

MR. BOUCHER: I would say that, first of all, they did deal directly with each other. And that's an important aspect of what they were able to do. Second of all, they did things that would help each other in terms of Chairman Arafat making, I think, a public call for an end to shootings.

So that's another important aspect of what happened. Third of all, the Secretary was able to help reinforce that and give each, the other some confidence that they were telling us what they were telling each other. The Secretary was able, I think, to sort of pass the message that, if you do this, he'll do that, if you do that, he'll do this, and help reinforce the kind of understandings that they were reaching. There were bits of detail in these conversations. But I think fundamentally it was conveying that sense that the parties really were prepared to do this for each other and to encourage each of them from our side to do the right thing – on the Israeli part to withdraw; on the Palestinian part, to make sure the shooting stopped.

QUESTION: Did you speak to (inaudible) the Europeans at the same time as speaking to the parties?

MR. BOUCHER: Yesterday? I can't quite remember. Let me check my electronic memory.

QUESTION: The day before he spoke to --

QUESTION: Yesterday afternoon.

MR. BOUCHER: I think he was busy on the phone with some others yesterday. He did talk to Jack Straw yesterday, but I don't -- today he has talked to Renato Ruggiero, the Italian Foreign Minister. And he has also talked to King Abdallah of Jordan.

QUESTION: People in Brussels, particularly in the Belgian Foreign Ministry, which is the -- Belgium is the current president of the E.U. -- seem to be getting very excited about what the Belgian Foreign Minister and his attempt to get the US, the EU and the Russians back together again.

And I'm just wondering, does the US see this as a new initiative, or is this just a continuation of what has been -- what the international community has been trying to do since the early '90s?

MR. BOUCHER: Didn't we talk about that yesterday?

QUESTION: Yes, but they are saying it again today, unfortunately, in Brussels.

MR. BOUCHER: Well, then I will respond again today the way I did yesterday. The Secretary has kept in touch with Foreign Minister Michel of Belgium, as they are currently in the EU presidency. We look to cooperate and work with the Europeans and others in this regard. I think the Belgians have said that they don't have a particular step or initiative to propose at this point but want to keep cooperating with us. The Secretary has used the occasion of all his phone calls with other foreign ministers, and with the Europeans and Russians and others, to say that we remain focused on implementation of the Mitchell Report, and that everybody needs to do what they can to encourage the parties to take steps to stop the violence and to get into the implementation of the Mitchell Report in all its aspects.

So that has been the substance of their discussions so far, and that remains the focus of the international community, and as far as we understand, that remains the focus of the European Union as well.

As I was coming down here to brief, I think the Secretary was starting a conversation with Javier Solana, the European High Representative on foreign policy issues. So that will be the substance of that conversation as well, I'm sure.

QUESTION: About Solana's upcoming trip to the region?

MR. BOUCHER: I don't know of Solana's upcoming trip and any specifics, but to compare notes on the situation in the Middle East is the way I would put it.

QUESTION: Sharon is going through on a trip to Moscow, having hesitated because of obviously the problems at home. Does the US get into -- I know there has been coordination with Russia and some praise here for Russia's interest in trying to help bring down the violence. Is there something further to be said? When the Secretary spoke to Sharon, did he encourage him to go on? Has he been back to the Russians on this, anything of this?

MR. BOUCHER: This visit to Moscow has been talked about, and it is obviously a decision for the Israelis and the Russians to make about going or not going and when they go. The question of coordination, I think, exists in that we have -- the Secretary has spoken to Foreign Minister Ivanov from time to time repeatedly about the Middle East. And again, the view of, I think, the international community is that the Mitchell Committee recommendations remain the proper path, the way to go forward, and we are all looking for ways to help and encourage the parties to get there and to do that. And we would expect that to be part of the discussion in Moscow as well.

QUESTION: In Gaza, do you have any reaction to news that another several houses have been demolished by Israel? And also that since the roadways are blocked, a UN relief group -- I'm not sure how many people were in it -- General Commissioner Peter Hansen was blocked from actually getting into Gaza?

MR. BOUCHER: I guess I wasn't aware of that news. I will have to check on it and see.

QUESTION: In these conversations which the Secretary had yesterday, did any of the participants revive the concept of the rolling cease-fire, and did any of them suggest that perhaps the Beit Jala deal might be the beginning of something bigger?

MR. BOUCHER: I think you will have to ask the parties about what they are proposing and suggesting at this point. I would say that for our part, we are looking for any steps that can be taken and will be taken to end the violence. We are looking for the steps that we specified. And as I said, I think that we think that this example of cooperation and the ability to stop the shooting in Beit Jala demonstrates the value of security cooperation, demonstrates the need for the parties to resume that cooperation and get back on track towards ending the violence and implementing the Mitchell Committee recommendations.

QUESTION: Did either of the parties ask the Secretary for a higher level presence to help them work with security cooperation, such as George Tenet or another person from this building?

MR. BOUCHER: Once again, I am not going to get into what the parties may have said or asked. It is up to them to describe what they want.

QUESTION: Well, is the Administration considering sending somebody other than the representatives that you have on the ground to help them work with a cease-fire, or security --

MR. BOUCHER: We have sent people out from to time. I am sure we might again, but I don't have anything to say at this point.

QUESTION: Do you have the answer about the question on Peru I asked you yesterday? It has been --

MR. BOUCHER: The answer to the question on Peru? Remind which question on Peru so that I don't answer the wrong one.

QUESTION: It was the Peruvian Government request.

MR. BOUCHER: Okay, judicial assistance?

QUESTION: Yes.

MR. BOUCHER: No. We don't know of any requests by Peruvian authorities for assistance in the investigation of the Barrios Altos and La Cantuta massacres, which occurred in the early 1990s.

QUESTION: On Latin America, one more? Can you give us some readout about the results of the meeting of the interagency in Mexico?

MR. BOUCHER: Sorry?

QUESTION: Under Secretary Grossman was in Mexico.

MR. BOUCHER: His meetings in Mexico. No, I've got him moved on to Colombia already. I would just leave you to -- take Colombia.

QUESTION: (Inaudible.)

MR. BOUCHER: No, I will be glad to get you something on the Mexico discussions. As you know, though, we have had an awful lot going on with Mexico right now, as befits the kind of relationship we have, and we have President Fox coming next week. So I think in terms of the highlights of news and publicity about Mexico, we are sort of looking to next week to do that.

Do we have some kind of rundown? From yesterday? How soon we forget. How soon I forget.

In Mexico, Under Secretary Grossman met with Foreign Minister Jorge Castaneda, with National Security Advisor Adolfo Aguilar Zinser, and Special Ambassador Andres Rozental to discuss regional and bilateral issues.

So then he went on to Colombia. In Colombia, the point of Under Secretary Grossman's visit with the interagency delegation was to make clear that Colombia is important to the United States, to show continued United States support for Plan Colombia and to review Plan Colombia implementation to ensure the fullest possible cooperation between our two countries, and to ensure effective implementation.

On Wednesday, they met with Vice President Bell, with Foreign Minister Fernandez de Soto and key members of the Colombian administration. Under Secretary Grossman then called on President Pastrana. He met with him for about 90 minutes.

Today Under Secretary Grossman is meeting with representatives from Joint Task Force South -- that's US and Colombian military personnel -- and he is touring an alternate development site in Southern Colombia. In the meeting with President Pastrana, Under Secretary Grossman reiterated our full support for his efforts to achieve peace in Colombia.

QUESTION: Let me ask another question on Mexico. Ambassador Davidow announced yesterday that it will be a plan from the United States to give 60,000 visas for temporary workers in the United States. Do you have some details? Has there been a decision already? I think he is ahead of the President of the United States.

MR. BOUCHER: I think you are. But I don't think Ambassador Davidow is --

QUESTION: He said that, 60,000.

MR. BOUCHER: Let me check on what Ambassador Davidow has said at this point.

QUESTION: Yes, the situation with the Norwegian freighter, the Afghan refugees and the Australian Government. You would be aware it seems to be deadlocked at the moment. Has the US been in contact with any of the parties here? Have you developed a view on how it might be resolved? And could you play a role?

MR. BOUCHER: We have not been approached by anybody to get involved. We have obviously followed the situation and I am sure we have talked to all the governments involved to try to keep up with what is going and what the situation is. Our concern in this kind of case would be for the safety and the welfare of the people on board the vessel. We would hope that the governments involved -- that would be Australia, Norway, and Indonesia -- would cooperate to resolve the issue.

QUESTION: Do you think that the Australians should let them land?

MR. BOUCHER: Again, we hope that the governments involved cooperate and resolve the issue with the interests of the people on board in mind.

QUESTION: But meaning that someone should allow this ship to go ashore and to have people look at the refugees who are on board?

MR. BOUCHER: Did I mention our hope that the governments involved would cooperate to resolve the issue?

QUESTION: Yeah.

MR. BOUCHER: You can say, well, doesn't that mean this, doesn't that mean that, doesn't that mean this? But essentially we are saying we hope these guys work it out.

QUESTION: Yes, but you could have said --

MR. BOUCHER: We could have said, they ought to do this, this, this --

QUESTION: -- we think that ship ought to go to --

MR. BOUCHER: -- and this.

QUESTION: -- to Malaysia.

MR. BOUCHER: Okay.

QUESTION: Could you say at all if you were approached?

MR. BOUCHER: At this point we have not been approached. We think it is well within the capability of these governments to try to resolve it.

QUESTION: The Australian Prime Minister has approached the UN at this point. And there have also been appeals to the UN by the Norwegian Government. So is that moving it more into the sort of area that you may be involved in?

MR. BOUCHER: We think that they are able to resolve this. We hope they will resolve this. And if they get others involved, that's fine, too.

QUESTION: Has Mr. Southwick made any progress in Durban?

MR. BOUCHER: Well, he has made progress to Durban. He has actually arrived in Durban. I think that's the main achievement that he has done today. He's been on a airplane all day.

QUESTION: Yes. I mean, he left last night, so he got there this morning, according to what you said yesterday.

MR. BOUCHER: Yes, he left on an airplane last night and he got there --

QUESTION: Right, well, it's now --

MR. BOUCHER: He got there this evening already because of the time factor.

QUESTION: I was under the impression that he's been there for several hours. I mean, I don't know. Maybe he didn't have any meetings today.

MR. BOUCHER: Perhaps several hours. The answer is, there's no news to report out of Durban. Our delegation just got there. Our group of representatives, I should say -- the people just got out there to work the issues. And they will be doing that, but I don't have any report back. Yes, they just got there.

QUESTION: Anything on Afghanistan?

MR. BOUCHER: What do we have that is new?

QUESTION: Just one more on Durban. Any more decisions made?

MR. BOUCHER: No, no more decisions on the nature and extent of participation.

Our understanding out of Afghanistan is that the Australian consular representative and a doctor visited the two Australian detainees today and that they appear to be in good health. There have been no other visits today.

QUESTION: Is that the second visit to the Australians?

MR. BOUCHER: I think the Australians are probably counting more carefully. But I think that's the second. There have been no other visits to the detainees so far today. Consular officials from the US, Germany and Australia and relatives of the detainees remain in Kabul. We have seen the press reports that the Taliban announced a trial for the detainees upon completion of investigation of charges. But we have not received any information directly from the Taliban on that development. We will continue to seek that kind of information from the Taliban, as well as to be allowed to look after the welfare of these people and make sure that they are treated fairly.

QUESTION: So there has been no other meeting with Taliban officials?

MR. BOUCHER: Not at this point, no.

QUESTION: And you have never really had – have you had an accurate reading of what the charges are and how they might be applied to Taliban law at this point?

MR. BOUCHER: We have not had a direct statement from them on the judicial matters.

QUESTION: Have the women been asked whether or not – the American women, in particular – whether or not, in fact, they were preaching about Christianity?

MR. BOUCHER: I'm sorry? Been asked?

QUESTION: Been asked by the consular officials who visited them. I presume they've been in touch with US officials.

MR. BOUCHER: Our concern is for their welfare. And that's about as far as I would go.

QUESTION: Okay, because previously you all had said because you hadn't had an opportunity to see them, you weren't able to comment on whether or not the charges were, in fact, legitimate. Does the US have any comment on the charges?

MR. BOUCHER: I don't have any comment at this moment, no.

QUESTION: Following up on what I asked yesterday, in our readout from US diplomats, has there been any indication that this lecture about UN sanctions is connected by the Taliban to the detainees?

MR. BOUCHER: I am not aware of anything like that at this point.

QUESTION: Richard, did you get an explanation from anybody why the Australians were getting a second visit while your people are not? And you were told – do you feel discriminated against by this?

MR. BOUCHER: I don't know why that might have been the case and not others. I would say we continue to look for access to these people. We continue to look for visits and the ability to visit with them. We will continue to press for that.

QUESTION: Do you know how long their visas are for?

MR. BOUCHER: Two weeks.

QUESTION: Is there a US doctor trying to get access, as well?

MR. BOUCHER: I don't know. I will have to check. Others on this? Okay, let's move on.

QUESTION: Middle East.

MR. BOUCHER: Yes.

QUESTION: Does the US expect an increase of terrorist activity or a spill- over to other regions in the aftermath of Abu Ali Mustafa killing?

MR. BOUCHER: I don't know that I would make any particular predictions. We certainly believe that there is no ground or cause to believe that the United States is in any way responsible for this situation. We have spoken quite clearly what we think of the practice of targeted killings.

QUESTION: You cannot link the new threats in Romania and Bulgaria to this?

MR. BOUCHER: No.

QUESTION: This situation?

MR. BOUCHER: No, I wouldn't do that. I can't link them to anything. I can't really talk about the nature of those threats. I am just not able to talk about that.

QUESTION: Do you have anything to say about the election in East Timor?

MR. BOUCHER: Yes. I think we can get you, first of all -- one question at a time, okay? First of all, I think we can get you a transcript of Assistant Secretary Kelly’s remarks. He was out there and has talked about the situation.

But let me say that the voting started, I guess it took place on August 30th in East Timor. They are voting to select a constituent assembly that will draft a new constitution for a new nation. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs James Kelly was in East Timor leading a US delegation to observe this historic election. Early reports indicate a very smooth and peaceful process and an extremely high voter turn-out. Many voters waited for hours in the hot sun for their turn to cast a ballot. The constitution to be drafted by the assembly represents an extremely important step in the process towards the formation of a self- determined and democratic government. And we look forward with great interest to the outcome of that process.

Okay, let’s keep going.

QUESTION: Elections. Fijians are going up to the polls and the prime minister who was ousted, he's seeking his old job (inaudible). So what role is the US playing, Richard, as far as the elections?

MR. BOUCHER: We generally try not to play any role in other people’s elections, unless we have assistance supporter observers.

QUESTION: Are you watching this election?

MR. BOUCHER: I'm sure we are.

QUESTION: I mean, anybody from (inaudible) have contacted the US Embassy or State Department, or --

MR. BOUCHER: The embassy's job is to monitor the situation and keep in touch with people on the ground. I'm sure they are doing that in this situation.

QUESTION: Do you have any new information after the visit of Lord Robertson in Macedonia?

MR. BOUCHER: Just your basic update on the situation. NATO has completed its first phase of the operation, the collection operation. They have collected a significant number of weapons and they exceeded the target figure for the first phase. The task force commander has certified the collection to President Trajkovski. We think that is an important confidence-building measure. We expect parliament will convene tomorrow to begin discussing the constitutional amendments called for in the framework agreement signed on August the 13th. We are disturbed by the bombings in recent days. Peace, we think, is in the interest of all the citizens of Macedonia. These bombings are deplorable, misguided attempts to derail a process toward peace and we think they will not succeed.

We are out there. Ambassador Pardew is out there working with European Envoy Francois Leotard to try to continue to support the process and work with people as the parliament takes up these important changes.

QUESTION: There are some plans about the referendum after the parliament’s decision?

MR. BOUCHER: The parties involved—the political parties, the government party leaders—made a commitment to implement the framework agreement according to a specific time-table. And we think that they need to continue to work towards that end, and that is what matters to us.

QUESTION: Does the US have any reaction to Macedonian hardliners; allegations that some of the weapons being turned in our obsolete—are inoperative weapons?

MR. BOUCHER: You guys can help each other. Maybe you can help each other in advance and do it more smoothly. Okay, you have a question?

QUESTION: Yes, the weapons that are being turned in, some of the Macedonian hardliners are saying that these weapons are obviously not the weapons that the NLA is carrying. Does the US have any reaction to those allegations?

MR. BOUCHER: I will leave it to NATO to put more details on the specific weaponry. They are on the ground. They are collecting the weapons. They are looking at them. We see this as a very serious and credible effort. We think the achievements so far demonstrate that and that the achievements will continue to demonstrate the importance of this effort towards demilitarizing the conflict.

QUESTION: Richard, I realize that you don’t like to comment on legal proceedings while they are happening. But I am just wondering if the US has anything to say or has any thoughts about the attitude that Slobodan Milosevic is taking in The Hague

MR. BOUCHER: The attitude question. All right. I don’t think I would comment on the attitude. I know there have been reports that the prosecutor will seek genocide charges against Slobodan Milosevic. We, obviously, await the prosecutor’s determination in doing that. But I would just say we have always supported the Tribunal in following the evidence wherever it may lead. That would be our attitude towards what is going on in The Hague.

We think that there needs to be this prosecution. We have always said so. The charges need to be filed according to the facts. And we appreciate the fact that the prosecutors are doing that.

QUESTION: You don’t think that his defiance and refusal to accept the Tribunal as legitimate court is ill-conceived, wrong? I mean, certainly you don’t agree with what he is arguing, do you?

MR. BOUCHER: We support the existence of the Tribunal. We support the actions of the Tribunal. We support the pressing of charges. We support the following of evidence wherever it may lead. That is what we think needs to be done in this situation. The attitude of a particular defendant is for him or her to decide in accordance with their own decision-making. But they have an opportunity to defend themselves. We think these prosecutions are important and need to go forward.

QUESTION: Back to Peru for one last question.

MR. BOUCHER: Okay.

QUESTION: The US had a very good relationship with Peru when Fujimori was the president. And now he is being accused of being responsible for murders and violations of human rights. You don’t have any reaction to that?

MR. BOUCHER: We have, I think, spoken over the years about human rights matters in Peru. And there is a record on that. But I would also say that the specific prosecutions and questions are important things for the Peruvian justice system to take up, that we will leave it to them and not interfere.

QUESTION: Assistant Secretary Elizabeth Jones is wrapping her trip to the Caucasus. And before leaving she told her last stop would be Vienna where she would discuss with the acting chairman of the OSCE the Armenia- Azerbaijan conflict. Do you have any details on this meeting?

MR. BOUCHER: No, I don’t. She is on her way home today, so we will maybe get something from her when she gets back.

QUESTION: And, Richard, did you check on your stance regarding the elections in Nagorno-Karabakh? The Council of Europe called them illegitimate and undermining the peace efforts. What’s the US position on that?

MR. BOUCHER: Yes, our view is really the one we have always taken. We support the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. We don’t recognize Nagorno- Karabakh as any kind of independent country. To date we think the future status of Nagorno-Karabakh is a matter that needs to be negotiated through the Minsk Process. We have strongly supported and actively been involved in that process. So along with the other co-chairs of the Minsk Group—France and Russia—we have a mandate to mediate the settlement there. And we will continue to work in that direction.

QUESTION: The US side is changing its co-chair in the Minsk Group. Will it somehow change the process of peace negotiations? What should the conflict side expect from that?

MR. BOUCHER: No. The process, the pace of negotiations really depends on the substance of the negotiations. Cary Cavanaugh, Ambassador Cavanaugh, finished his assignment three days ago, August 27th. He will be replaced by Ambassador Rudy Perina, who is currently the US Ambassador to Moldova. Ambassador Perina will finish his duties in Moldova on November 1st, when he concludes his assignment. And during the interim, the Deputy Special Negotiator will serve in an acting capacity. So we have people working on this all the way through. We have a new person picked already to continue this process and to continue the active US role that we have played and will continue to play in these negotiations along with our other co- chairs.

QUESTION: Which is a full-time job?

MR. BOUCHER: Yes.QUESTION_: You said that you don’t think that the elections there will affect the Minsk Process. Does that mean that –do I assume from that that you don’t object to them then?

MR. BOUCHER: I just would say that the focus that we have is on the Minsk Process. That is the way to settle and make any determinations about the future status of Nagorno-Karabakh. And that is the process that we are involved in that we will pursue.

QUESTION: But apparently from what people are saying, the Council of Europe has objected to them because I guess they think it would complicate the situation. You don’t think that—

MR. BOUCHER: We don’t think it will affect that process. And that is the process we are supporting and working on.

QUESTION: I’m just trying—are you refusing to take the next step? Or you just don’t want to?

MR. BOUCHER: I’m not taking any other steps. I’m staying right there and saying that we are doing what we are doing. And this is not affecting it.

QUESTION: With the arrest this morning, or actually the turn in of Soltys out in California, in Sacramento, are you hearing from the Ukrainians concerning that trial? And because of what has happened, is there going to be any change in the screening process for immigration, especially from—

MR. BOUCHER: I really don’t know that we have any connection to that, so I don’t have anything for you.

Go ahead.

QUESTION: Yes, in Saudi Arabia, there was an arrest of Christians. Do you have anything on this? I believe the organization was an evangelical organization based in Montana, I believe?

MR. BOUCHER: Let me see what we know on that . Yes, at this point we have asked our consulate in Jeddah to find out the facts in those arrests. We understand that no Americans were among those arrested.

QUESTION: Can you state for the record the US position on the resumption of talks between Taiwan and the Chinese mainland? I ask you this question—of course you are probably aware of the flak—Mr. Burghardt, the American Institute in Taiwan Director, made a speech in which he made a statement which was interpreted as endorsing the position of the present Government of Taiwan, President Chen Shui-bian. Of course, President Chen Shui-bian does not subscribe to the proposition that there is One China. So can you clarify the situation?

MR. BOUCHER: Anybody have handy our traditional and official position? I’ll get it for you later. I don’t have the exact words that we always use in my book today. It has not changed, but we will get you the standard statement.

QUESTION: Richard, do you know if there has been any new effort by the Secretary and the people in this building to get a hearing for Otto Reich at the Foreign Relations Committee?

MR. BOUCHER: We always have people in this building working with the people with the committees on the Hill to secure confirmation of our nominees. And we are working with them now. I don’t think I have any news in that regard.

Sometimes we keep official statements—the official things around. Okay, the official position on dialogue. Questions relating to establishing the basis for dialogue between Taiwan and the People’s Republic of China re matters for the two parties to resolve. The United States takes no position on the substance of such questions. Our abiding interest is that any resolution of cross-strait issues be peaceful. We believe that dialogue is the best way to achieve this.

QUESTION: But do you have any comment on Mr. Burghardt’s statement, though?MR. BOUCHER_: My comment would be just to say that is our position that I just gave you.

QUESTION: In other words, you deny what he said?

MR. BOUCHER: My comment would be to say our position is the one I just gave you. One more.

QUESTION: Let me ask you a very different question. On this issue, the Prime Minister of India, President Clinton and President Bush all have spoken as far as Indian-American community’s role fostering Indo-US relations. And now, the reason I am asking this, and also the role of the Indian-American media here in the US, is because (inaudible) of The Telegraph is critical of the role the Indian-American community is playing here.

So what is the position of the State Department as far as the Indian-US relations are concerned, how is this community is playing the role it has played in the past and in the future?

MR. BOUCHER: You are asking me to chose between siding with two US Presidents and the President of India on the one hand, or going with a journalist and commentator of the other one? I think I will jump in with the two Presidents and the President of India, if I can. That is our view.

QUESTION: And how about the Secretary? What is;;

MR. BOUCHER: I am sure he wants to be counted among them as well. We will all go together on that side.

Thank you. [End]

Released on August 30, 2001

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