December 19, 1995
Web posted at: 6:08 a.m. EST (1108 GMT)
From Correspondent Rob Reynolds
ZUPANJA, Croatia (CNN) -- It is a symbolic obstacle for the peace mission in Bosnia. A deep chasm lies between the war-torn and the peacekeepers. The first challenge that American troops will face in the coming months is the Sava River.
A U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster roars in to Tasza Air Base in Hungary. Within minutes, a ground crew has unloaded the giant aircraft's cargo: two mobile machine shops to be used in support of the Bosnia peacekeeping mission.
Tasza is the main staging base for American troops. On the other side of the sprawling base, a tent city is springing up. About 400 Hungarian workers bustle about, setting up temporary homes for the 20,000 American troops that will flow through here. "We're looking at 3,000 of those soldiers at a time here for about three to five days as a unit arrives, stages reconfigures and then departs south into Bosnia," said Capt. Bob Hastings, a U.S. Army spokesman.
The tents are equipped with wooden floors to keep out the mud and gasoline heaters to keep out the cold, but so far there are no occupants. Before troops arrive, a secure crossing point is needed for them to enter Bosnia. First, the deep, fast waters of the 350 meter-wide Sava River must be breached.
The crossing point is at Zupanja on the Bosnian-Croatian border. Zupanja's highway bridge was blown up in September 1991. For now, the only way across is by ferry.
The U.S. Army plans to build a floating bridge near this point, an operation that will be critical to the early phase of the American deployment. "If a bridge is not constructed, it's going to be extremely difficult for us to get our forces across," said Lt. Colonel Mario Carrillo.
A U.S. cavalry troop equipped with Abrams tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles, have moved into Zupanja for reconnaissance and to provide security for the bridge building operation.
But the bridge sits disassembled on rail cars in Germany. It will be several days, perhaps longer, before the Sava can be reached.
Across the river is a small pocket of Bosnian Croat territory, but beyond that is the Bosnian Serb-controlled Posavina corridor. U.S. troops will have to cross the border in order to reach their base in Tuzla.
Across the Sava, the troops may encounter man-made obstacles, but for now the greatest barrier is the one imposed by nature itself.
Copyright © 1995 Cable News Network, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive