Statement by Press Secretary Fitzwater on the London Conference on the Former Yugoslavia

The President met this morning with Acting Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger to discuss the results of the London conference on the former Yugoslavia.

The conference has given us a better foundation to defuse, contain, and bring to an end the conflict in former Yugoslavia. It has established a new, permanent negotiating forum, cochaired by the United Nations and the European Community, in Geneva. The United States has offered $3 million to help with startup costs of the conference.

The conference developed an international plan of action to deal with this crisis. As a result, the international community is taking a number of concrete actions to provide humanitarian relief, increase pressure on the aggressors, and contain the conflict. These include a massive humanitarian relief effort for this winter; a strengthening of the sanctions regime by introducing international monitors in neighboring states; and the placing of human rights monitors as well as "early warning" monitors in neighboring states and regions.

The conference also made progress with the parties themselves. The leader of the Bosnian Serbs has agreed to consolidate heavy weapons under international control and the Government of Bosnia has agreed to rejoin the negotiating process.

The causes of this conflict are complex; it will not be ended overnight. We thank Prime Minister Major and Secretary-General Boutros-Ghali for organizing and running this conference, which has succeeded in galvanizing international action to alleviate the humanitarian nightmare in Bosnia, to support the negotiating process, to punish the aggressors, and to quarantine the conflict.