Clinton, Yeltsin narrow their differences on Bosnia

October 23, 1995
Web posted at: 9:41 p.m. EDT (0141 GMT)

From Senior White House Correspondent Wolf Blitzer

HYDE PARK, New York (CNN) -- U.S. President Bill Clinton and his Russian counterpart Boris Yeltsin emerged from their talks Monday claiming their basic differences over Bosnia had been resolved.

"We reached a complete agreement about how we would work together for peace there," Clinton said.

But it wasn't exactly a complete agreement. The two sides have not ironed out the central issue of Russian troop participation in a peacekeeping force in Bosnia. Yeltsin still refused to put his troops under NATO command -- and discussions on this issue continue.

"We recognized that some of the things that needed to be decided neither of us could in good conscience decide without giving our military leaders a chance to work through it," Clinton said. (235K AIFF sound of 235K WAV sound)

Yeltsin ridiculed the news media for stressing U.S.-Russian differences going into the meeting.

"If you look at the press reports, one would see what you were writing was that today's meeting with President Bill Clinton was going to be a disaster," he said. "Now for the first time I can tell you you're a disaster." (1.5M QuickTime movie)

Earlier, upon Yeltsin's arrival, there were hugs and smiles. Their meeting here was rich with history and symbolism. The White House picked Hyde Park -- the home of the late President Franklin Roosevelt -- because the U.S. and Russia were allies during World War II.

Overlooking the Hudson River Valley, they sat in the same chairs Roosevelt and Winston Churchill used when they met to plot strategy. Yeltsin commented that it must have been very difficult to plan war at such a peaceful setting.

The two leaders also paid their respects at the grave sites of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt.

Yeltsin was upbeat in assessing the long-term U.S.-Russian relationship.

"This proves that our partnership is not calculated for one year or five years, but for years and years to come, tens of years for a century," he said.

The two presidents agreed to work toward a new comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty next year. But there were no breakthroughs on other sensitive issues, including NATO expansion in Eastern Europe and Russia's sale of nuclear reactors to Iran.

One Western leader warned Clinton at the U.N. not to push Yeltsin too hard, fearing the rise of ultra-nationalists in Russia. Still, U.S. officials say they were pleasantly surprised by what was achieved.

Clinton, Yeltsin narrow their differences on Bosnia

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