U.S. Department of State Daily Press Briefing #124, 00-12-06
HR-Net News Distribution Manager
U.S. Department of State
Daily Press Briefing
_INDEX_
_Wednesday, December 6, 2000_
_Briefer: RICHARD BOUCHER, SPOKESMAN_
----
_RUSSIA_
1-4 Position on conviction of Edmund Pope / Consequences of his
conviction
4-5 Discussions in Moscow on arms sales to Iran
_INDIA_
5 India's request for US support for its bid for a permanent seat on
the UN Security Council
_YEMEN_
5 Cole Investigation
_PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY_
5-6 Economic restrictions / Multilateral and bilateral economic
assistance for the Palestinians
_AFGHANISTAN_
7 Usama Bin Laden
_COLOMBIA_
7-8 Reports of Venezuelan involvement in Colombia, Bolivia and Ecuador
/ Colombian military zone / Caffrey statement on arrest of FARC
traffickers at sea
----
_U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE_
_DAILY PRESS BRIEFING_
_DPB #124_
_WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2000, 12:45 P.M._
_(ON THE RECORD UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED)_
_MR. BOUCHER_: Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I don't have any
statements or announcements, so I would be glad to take your questions.
Where is the senior wire correspondent?
_QUESTION_: Edmond Pope was sentenced today to 20 years in prison. Do you
have any official comment on that?
_MR. BOUCHER_: Yes. We have quite a bit to say. Obviously this is a
situation we have followed quite closely all along. We are very disturbed
by the conviction. We think it is unjustified; we think it is wrong, both
the conviction and the sentencing on espionage charges.
As we have said in the past, we see no evidence that Mr. Pope violated any
Russian laws. The verdict is hardly surprising given the inability of
Pope's lawyers to introduce evidence at the trial, but I want to stress
once again, the conviction and the sentencing are wrong and they are not
justified.
Mr. Pope's health has deteriorated sharply over the past nine months in
prison. We saw this again yesterday during our consular visit when our
consular officer visited with Mrs. Pope and went to see Edmond Pope, and
it is clear that his health has continued to deteriorate over the past nine
months.
Once again, we stress we look to the Russian Government to release him. We
think he needs proper medical attention, he needs to be with his family,
and we look to them to release him. Clearly, it is well time to do that.
_QUESTION_: What steps are you planning to take in terms of this? Are you
going to -- have you sent them anything formal, or what can be done?
_MR. BOUCHER_: At this point, our Embassy in Moscow has certainly been in
touch with the Russians. I think we have made clear all along; the
President has raised this multiple times; the Secretary has raised this
multiple times. We have made quite clear that this is an important issue to
us, that his welfare and well-being are very important to us. I think the
Russians do understand that this is an important issue to us, and we will
continue to make that case and make the point to them directly.
_QUESTION_: Do you believe that at some point they will release him?
_MR. BOUCHER_: That is a question you will have to ask them. We believe
they should release him at points in the past, but certainly now it is time
for them to release him.
_QUESTION_: Has the Secretary talked to Ivanov today, or does she have
plans to?
_MR. BOUCHER_: She has not talked to him so far today. She may, and if she
does I will pass on word to you.
_QUESTION_: Do you see any signs of waning US influence in Russia given
that this has been a case that the State Department and the White House
made it repeated entreaties about, and have been rebuffed and ignored by
the Russian Government?
_MR. BOUCHER_: I am not going to try to draw conclusions like that at this
time. I think we have had issues like this in the past, where it has taken
some time and considerable effort to resolve them. So we will continue our
efforts in the hopes that Mr. Pope can be freed.
_QUESTION_: And given the multitude of things on the platter for US-Russian
relations, how high does this rank in terms of priorities with our
relationship with Russia?
_MR. BOUCHER_: I don't think that at any given moment we have a list in
rank order, one, two, three. I just have to point out that any issue that
has been raised by President Clinton multiple times with the Russian
President, that is raised in almost every conversation that the Secretary
has with the Russian Foreign Minister, that is raised repeatedly by our
Ambassador in Moscow, is a very important issue to the United States, and
we will continue to make that clear.
_QUESTION_: Are you considering to issue any travel warning for American
businessmen traveling to Russia, or any advice of this kind?
_MR. BOUCHER_: We have during the course of the trial -- I think it was
about two or three months ago -- revised our Consular Information Sheet to
make it clear to American businessmen in particular who might be traveling
to do high technology business that there were these risks inherent in the
way the Russian legal system has handled these cases, or this case, and
that they should be aware of that.
And I know I have been asked before, you know, how has that affected
travelers and trade? It's hard to say because what it affects is the people
who don't go, who don't talk to us. But I do know that talking to some of
the people who work on these things that the trial is a subject that comes
up repeatedly in their conversations with American businessmen. It
obviously is a concern of people who might be considering doing business
with Russia. And we have made that -- that what we have said in our
Information Sheet.
_QUESTION_: Richard, the US has said that it hasn't seen any evidence that
would convince it that Edmond Pope was spying in any way. But what evidence
can the US offer, in fact, that a former naval intelligence officer who was
in Moscow was not, in fact, spying?
_MR. BOUCHER_: The man was in private business. You can't convict
everybody who may have served in the military of being a spy just because
they had a period of service in the past. The man was in private business.
It is incumbent upon people who present evidence at the trial to prevent
such evidence. As I have said, it is clear from the way things proceeded --
even though we weren't there, it is clear that his lawyers were not able to
introduce evidence at the trial -- the summation given by the judge -- I
think the lawyer on Mr. Pope's behalf has pointed out a number of
difficulties and holes in that.
So I think we have said all along that we were not aware that there was any
evidence that would justify charges and conviction, and we still think that
that is the case. And that is only part, though, of the conclusion that he
deserves to be released. His health is in bad condition; there is no
evidence that he is guilty of any crimes; and we therefore think he ought
to be released.
_QUESTION_: What happens now?
_MR. BOUCHER_: In terms of legal steps, I think Mr. Pope, his family and
his attorneys will have to decide on whether they want to appeal, what they
want to do next. In terms of diplomatic steps, we will continue to press
and to raise this issue. And in terms of decisions, we hope the Russian
Government will make the right decision and release him.
_QUESTION_: If Mr. Pope is not released, do you think -- what sort of
effects will this have on long-term Russian-US relations?
_MR. BOUCHER_: I think one just has to say that this is an issue that is
very important to us; it is an issue we have raised repeatedly; it has
become a subject of conversation, every conversation just about, that we
have at senior levels with the Russians. It has clearly cast a shadow over
the relationship, and the important thing now is for the Russians to take
the right steps to remove it by releasing Mr. Pope.
_QUESTION_: So you think that American businessmen overall and women should
see this as some kind of chilling warning not to do business in Moscow? How
much of an isolated case do you consider this to be, or how dangerous do
you think it is to do business in Russia?
_MR. BOUCHER_: I think I will have to refer you to the Consular
Information Sheet that tries to describe that in some -- with perhaps more
accuracy than I can develop on the spur of the moment. But clearly there
are people who do business successfully in Russia without problems, but
particularly in areas that involve high technology. I am sure this gives
people pause and we know from our own contacts with businessmen that it
does give people pause.
_QUESTION_: Okay, what was my question? It just popped out of my head. Hold
on one second. Oh, Congressman John Peterson, who is in Moscow, has called
-- and I realize this is a question for the White House -- but he has
called for President Clinton to pick up the phone, call President Putin,
and get this thing worked out. Is Secretary Albright thinking about
calling Mr. Ivanov? I'm sorry, was that already asked?
_MR. BOUCHER_: I think that was just asked. She hasn't spoken to him at
this point. She may speak to him, and if she does we'll try to tell you
about it.
_QUESTION_: Well, because of the sequence of the events, will the
sentencing today have any effect on the negotiations on the
Gore-Chernomyrdin aide memoire discussions that have started in Moscow?
_MR. BOUCHER_: I think it's important to remember that we pursue a
relationship with Russia that is based on United States interests, and
where we have an interest in limiting Russian arms sales to places like
Iran and reaching understandings with them about our common interests in
resisting proliferation or resisting -- or impeding the ability of certain
countries to acquire weapons, that we will pursue that with the Russians.
And we need to pursue this relationship overall, as well as press on
particular issues that are very important to us, like the Pope case.
The discussions that were agreed in Vienna between Secretary Albright and
Foreign Minister Ivanov have proceeded in Moscow this week. We had a US
interagency delegation that met with Russian counterparts December 6th in
Moscow. Yuriy Kapralov, the director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Department of Security Affairs and Disarmament, led the experts from the
Russian Federation. On our side it was Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
for Nonproliferation Controls, John Barker, who led our delegation.
Conversations on the first day, on the 6th -- that's Wednesday -- were
full, frank and comprehensive. Discussions concentrated on conventional
arms sales, including sales to Iran, and they will continue tomorrow,
December 7th.
_QUESTION_: Richard, do they -- I mean, will they go beyond --
_MR. BOUCHER_: No, I don't know how long they might last, whether tomorrow
can conclude or not. I don't know.
_QUESTION_: Is there any outcome from these talks yet? I mean, do you --
are you encouraged by what you are hearing?
_MR. BOUCHER_: I wouldn't characterize it beyond what I've said: full,
frank and comprehensive.
_QUESTION_: Richard, in all the discussions with the President, the
Secretary, the Ambassador, et cetera, at various levels, have any specific
moves by the United States been suggested as possibilities that might
happen? Have they been warned in some way, aside from just saying we take
this seriously?
_MR. BOUCHER_: In all the discussions at any level is kind of broad and
difficult for me to address. I think I just have to say we've made quite
clear this is an issue of concern to us; it's an important issue to us.
It's one that we have raised and will continue to press with the Russians.
_QUESTION_: Do you have any comment with India's calling on the United
States that US should support India's claim on the Permanent UN Security
seat? And also London has said that they are with India, they will support
India's claim. Now, have you received any official claim or official
request from India?
_MR. BOUCHER_: Certainly this has been a subject of discussion at the
United Nations and elsewhere and in bilateral relationships as well. I
would have to check and see exactly where we are on India's seat, the
question of India getting a seat.
_QUESTION_: The Yemeni Prime Minister has said that up to six people may be
tried after Ramadan for the attack on the COLE.
_MR. BOUCHER_: We saw the press report. We have actually checked around
quite a bit and we really can't confirm information about trial dates being
set for subjects -- suspects in the USS COLE attack. The ongoing criminal
investigation is one that I can't really get into the status of. I can't
really get into the status of the ongoing criminal investigation. But as I
said, I've checked around. I'm not aware that they're setting dates for
trials and things like that.
I would emphasize once again we have very close cooperation with the Yemeni
Government officials on this. The relationships remain excellent, and we
are pleased with the progress we have made together with them on the
investigation so far.
_QUESTION_: Do you have names of these people?
_MR. BOUCHER_: Again, that kind of gets into the details of the
investigation that I'm not able to give you.
_QUESTION_: Well, an NBC affiliate in Boston is saying one of these people
was at one point a cab driver up there. Do you have any information whether
any of these people lived in this country?
_MR. BOUCHER_: I am sure that investigators are very interested in things
like that. But not being able to give you names, I can't give you personal
histories, either.
_QUESTION_: Today the World Bank approved a loan to the Palestinians
because of the hardships they have suffered because of Israeli crackdowns
on work and movement of people out of the Palestinian territories, and
there are reports that the poverty rate has doubled as most Palestinians
remain out of work during the ten weeks of violence.
Do you have any comment on the hardships suffered by the Palestinians and
what needs to be done by the world community?
_MR. BOUCHER_: Clearly the Palestinians are being harmed by the economic
restrictions that have been imposed on them by Israel. Some of these
restrictions have been eased, but we know that life remains very, very
difficult. Some of the restrictions that Israel has imposed have been
directly linked to their concerns about security, and Israeli security
concerns must be addressed as part of the process of ending the cycle of
violence and getting back to a calm and stable situation.
At the same time, we don't think that exerting economic pressure can be
productive. This only leads to great hardship to Palestinian families and
disrupts their economic life. So we have urged and continue to urge the
Israelis to ease their restrictions. As we've said repeatedly, we don't
think there is a military solution to this problem; we don't think there's
a place for violence, nor do we think that economic and political pressure
are a way to resolve it. We have consistently urged a path of negotiations
and a path of cooperation to end the cycle of violence and get back to a
negotiating track.
_QUESTION_: Well, on that front, the World Food Program asked donor nations
to kitty up money to help alleviate some of the economic hardship, and
especially the food problem, for Palestinians. And apparently none of the
donor nations kicked in any money, and the World Food Program's take on
this was that the donor nations want to donate to the peace process, not to
alleviate the economic hardships.
Does the US feel strongly enough about the economic hardships being
suffered by the Palestinians that they are prepared to send any aid of any
kind?
_MR. BOUCHER_: Well, I think I'm not aware of this specific appeal, but we
provide considerable assistance, humanitarian assistance as well as
development aid, things like health, water, sanitation projects at the
village level. There was some $400 million that comes out of the Wye River
Accords package that goes into West Bank and Gaza to support that kind of
development and community work in those areas. There is an annual
assistance package in year 2000 that was $85 million of economic assistance
and the same thing in Fiscal Year 2001.
So we do consistently and regularly provide assistance to areas where the
Palestinians live, and we support the international humanitarian
organizations like the UN relief and works agencies when they come out with
emergency appeals. So we support both humanitarian needs of the area, the
economic development needs, and the welfare needs to the tune of some --
well, four to five hundred million dollars, at least.
_QUESTION_: The World Bank loan was mentioned. Richard, was that a
US-sponsored or proposed initiative at the World Bank, or did it come about
by some other means?
_MR. BOUCHER_: I don't know. I would have to check and see.
_QUESTION_: On Usama Bin Laden, do you think he will be brought to justice
and stand trial in the United States under this Administration?
_MR. BOUCHER_: Let us hope so.
_QUESTION_: On Colombia -- actually, on Colombia and Venezuela, there was
an article in the Miami Herald saying that Mr. Peter Romero had said that
the State Department is aware of some kind of intentions from President
Chavez of (inaudible) kind of regional force in Colombia, Venezuela and
Ecuador. Do you have any comments on that?
_MR. BOUCHER_: Sorry. Once again? Romero says -- the Miami Herald says
Romero says Chavez is trying to put together -- supporting a regional
force?
_QUESTION_: Trying to -- making contacts with the guerillas in Colombia and
trying to -- do you know what I'm talking about?
_MR. BOUCHER_: Yes, that's what I have seen. I just wanted to make sure we
were talking about the same thing.
There have been reports in various ways on Venezuelan support for violent
indigenous movements in Bolivia, for military officers involved in last
January's attempted coup in Ecuador, and these are situations that we do
look into and we watch carefully. We do believe that the issues themselves
are best dealt with bilaterally between the two countries involved, and in
this case we have encouraged bilateral consultations directly.
_QUESTION_: And when you say that the State Department knows about this, it
means that maybe the United States can take any step in this case, or you
are going to leave this for the bilateral relations?
_MR. BOUCHER_: I think, as I said, we are aware of reports from various
sources, but what is important is that the countries themselves deal with
it directly in a bilateral way.
_QUESTION_: On Colombia again. Do you have any suggestions or
recommendations today to the Colombian Government about the (inaudible)
military zone? Tomorrow President Pastrana has to decide if he extends that
zone or not. Do you have any comments on that?
_MR. BOUCHER_: I'll have to check. I don't think we have taken a position
on that.
_QUESTION_: Do you have anything about the statement General McCaffrey made
yesterday about some people, members of the FARC, that were supposed to be
arrested at sea in possession of cocaine or narco-trafficking?
_MR. BOUCHER_: No.
_QUESTION_: No? Okay.
_MR. BOUCHER_: That's the kind of detailed thing that he would handle, and
not us directly.
_QUESTION_: Thanks.
_MR. BOUCHER_: Thank you.
(The briefing was concluded at 1:20 P.M.)
[end of document]
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