From: blucey@vax1.tcd.ie
Subject: NoShell ( Was Re : UN/US )
Organization: Trinity College Dublin
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 08:26:09 GMT

In article <1993Jan11.130855.9745@iscsvax.uni.edu>, howard@iscsvax.uni.edu writes:
> In article <1993Jan9.094946@IASTATE.EDU>, jakhan@IASTATE.EDU (Javed Ahmed Khan) writes:
>> Its funny. I thought you said that the UN owed its existence to the US and the
>> west and seeing the kind of action the UN has taken in many trouble spots, I
>> would think the US, Britain, France made up the UN. The UN is in fact a
>> coalition of the US, Britain and France ( and now a subservient Russia). 
>> But you then start to distinguish the UN from the will of the US 
>> and the west. 
>>
> 
> I think it is unreasonable for anyone to expect that President Bush
> would want to get involved in Bosnia so close to the end of his term
> (the change of Presidency to Governor Clinton is on Jan. 20). In fact, 
> the last 6 months have been difficult for President Bush politically
> to get involved in a foreign action, because that would have reinforced
> the view that he did not do anything domestically (which lost him the
> election anyway). Britain and France should have recognized that the
> U.S. election put the burden on them to take the inititiative, but they
> have been unwilling to do so, other than humanitarian relief. 
> 
> I don't know what we can expect President Clinton to do. I expect he
> will be more decisive with air power if the peace talks are deemed to 
> not be able to produce a solution. Paradoxically, it is the reports of
> the number of dead in Bosnia that causes the most worry in the U.S. about
> whether to get involved or not. We see reports of 100,000 dead and we
> don't see a way to guarantee minimal American casualties in terrain
> such as exists around Sarajevo. Our not getting involved has nothing
> to do with religion. In fact, I get the sense that Americans admired
> a city such as Sarajevo before the war because multiple ethnic groups
> lived together (and I understand that about 27% of pre-war Bosnia was
> of mixed ethnic background). We understand that the Muslims in Bosnia
> have (had?) much more tolerance of other religions than in countries
> such as Iran.  Vietnam was not actually that long ago for us- some of 
> my friends died in that war; all that went came back with emotional 
> scars that haven't healed yet.


Mary :
While your arguments are cogent and lucid, they do reflect an isolationist 
view of the USA. There are surely ways for the US and its ( feeble) allies to
assist in the situation. One way would be to declare a no-shell  zone. 
This would state that after a certain time. anybody found using any munition
above a certain size, say above a rifle. would be subject to immediate and
total air attack. With the technological and military sophistication of the US
this may be possible, even with shoot-and-scoot weaponry.
Regardless of the cost. the West, which in military terms means the US lead
forces, are going to have to intervene. Human solidarity deserves no less
We must not tolerate the Serbo-monsters any longer in their irridentist
savagery.

Brian M Lucey


> 
> -Mary Howard  
Newsgroups: soc.culture.bosna-herzgvna