State Department Noon Briefing
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
DAILY PRESS BRIEFING
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2000 12:45 P.M.
(ON THE RECORD UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED)
Q: Can we talk - a new subject? Secretary Albright's letter to
President Kostunica about a possible visit there and what his - is
any trip planned in the near future?
MR. BOUCHER: All right, let's start with the question. Secretary
Albright's letter to President Kostunica, period. Visits were not
mentioned in her letter. We told you at the time the letter was a
letter of congratulations to President Kostunica, looking forward to
the establishment of normal relations with a democratic Yugoslavia.
Q: Was this the letter (inaudible)?
MR. BOUCHER: Yes, the letter that we sent at the time of his election
-- or inauguration, actually. I'm not sure of the precise timing.
Q: (Inaudible)?
MR. BOUCHER: No.
Q: So why is this coming up today?
MR. BOUCHER: Because there is a report in the press that describes
this as a letter that asked about visits, and she didn't.
We are in this process of establishing normal contacts with this
government. They are in the process of forming a government. That
remains, I think, President Kostunica's highest priority. It is still
being consolidated. But we told you about the visits of Jim O'Brien
and Ambassador Montgomery. That was about the 12th of October. They
delivered letters. I guess that is when the Secretary's letter was
delivered. There was also one from the President.
We have kept in touch with President Kostunica since then. We have now
talked to his, I guess, proposed foreign minister, so we have channels
for discussion. We are establishing a normal set of contacts with this
government.
Q: What is the status of the quasi-embassy?
MR. BOUCHER: We are discussing the technical issues involved in
diplomatic relations at this point. He is forming a government. On our
side --
Q: No, no. I'm not talking about --
MR. BOUCHER: The quasi-embassy, meaning his embassy and our embassy.
Q: The actual, physical --
MR. BOUCHER: The facts. We are working out the arrangements for
funding, staffing, security and building space in Belgrade. We've got
to look at the property in a fairly thorough way, but that is being
done. They are looking at their property here. That is being done late
this week, early next week. We are making progress. We think we will
be in a position to establish the formal diplomatic relationship in
the very near future but, as I said, we have established normal
contacts already.
Q: Some reports say by next week. Is that too optimistic?
MR. BOUCHER: I don't have a precise prediction, but we think in the
near future we should be there. We have got to look at the properties,
and then the actual establishment is an exchange of letters between
the Presidents.
Q: What is the connection between establishing relations and having
properties? I mean, you can have relations before you have properties.
Why are you holding this - why are you linking the two at all?
MR. BOUCHER: Well, I guess it is normally done in connection with
having an ambassador there who gets accredited. And when you have an
ambassador there, then you want to have a place for him to work, et
cetera, et cetera. So we are looking at the properties to see if we
can do the whole thing.
Q: The US team that's in Belgrade is still - is not working out of
where the embassy was? They're still on the other site?
MR. BOUCHER: I think so. I will have to double-check that that is
still true because I think we are just doing walk-throughs of the
properties at this point. We haven't moved in.
Q: Kostunica, yesterday in an interview with CNN, said - I think for
the first time he acknowledged that there were some atrocities
committed by Serbs in Kosovo. Do you see this as a good sign that he
is coming around to some of the Western positions, and maybe there
could be some progress potentially on the war crimes issue?
MR. BOUCHER: I don't think I can comment on specific statements day by
day, but we do think that the importance of the rule of law is
paramount, the importance of the rule of the law of the new government
is paramount, and that as they seek to integrate themselves in the
European space and the international relationships, that these issues
of the rule of law will continue to be very important.
(The briefing was concluded at 1:25 P.M.)
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