Sylvester Turner: “the debate we are entered upon today has the gravest of consequences for our Nation and for our future. Having recently…”

“the debate we are entered upon today has the gravest of consequences for our Nation and for our future. Having recently returned from Bosnia, I had the opportunity there to learn a little bit about the attitudes present in that region. One thing that I did learn is that our allies, our NATO allies, have a strong commitment to keeping peace in the Balkans and they feel very strongly about our willingness as a NATO partner to stand tall with them in this crisis. I also learned from talking to some of our military leaders that there is a clear relationship between the situation in Bosnia and the developing events in Kosovo. Our investment in Bosnia, as one military leader told me, is clearly threatened by the developments in Kosovo. I also had the opportunity to talk with soldiers on the ground who are doing an excellent job keeping the peace in Bosnia, and, as one first sergeant shared with us in testimony before a committee hearing, he has made a spiritual investment in Bosnia and believes very strongly that we have done the right thing in trying to help keep the peace there. He said because of our soldiers children now go to school in Bosnia, can safely play in playgrounds without fear of land mines or snipers. We have clearly accomplished the objective of keeping peace in Bosnia, and the relationship between the situation in Kosovo and Bosnia is undisputed by those who serve us in our Armed Forces.”