December 22, 1995
Web posted at: 8:30 p.m. EST (0130 GMT)
From Correspondent Jackie Shymanski
TUZLA, Bosnia-Herzegovina (CNN) -- Friday was a perfect day for what U.S. forces needed to do the most: get moving. Cargo plane after cargo plane touched down in Tuzla, the staging point for U.S. operations in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The rush is on to get ready for the main deployment.
With so much work to do, the bad weather that has so far plagued the mission was quickly forgotten. "I'm glad to have some good weather so we can finally get in here to the job we've been trying to do for the last week or so," said U.S. Air Force Capt. Paul Watson.
"I think the most difficult issue is going to be the issue of reconciliation. That everyone understands that the enemies of yesterday are the partners of tomorrow."
-- Carl Bildt
As his troops streamed in, Gen. William Nash, commander of the U.S. sector, went on with his task of starting a dialogue between the warring sides. According to the Bosnians, it's so far, so good. "Thanks to IFOR, trust will develop once again," said Gen. Sead Delic, commander of the Bosnian 2nd Corp.
There is a historic example that the warring sides could learn from: The German troop occupation of Yugoslavia during World War II. This time, they come as peace enforcers.
The international effort to develop a trust is in high gear. Former European Union mediator Carl Bildt is in charge of developing the civilian side of the agreement. In a seemingly catch-all position, Bildt is overseeing economics, elections, and a general keeping of the peace.
"I think the most difficult issue is going to be the issue of reconciliation. That everyone understands that the enemies of yesterday are the partners of tomorrow," Bildt said. (119K AIFF sound or 119K WAV sound)
For now, residents of Tuzla are just getting used to their new neighbors. The U.S. troops are quite a curiosity. And if the weather holds, they'll keep coming at the rate of 30 planes a day.
NATO officials say that there are about 21,000 troops now on the ground in Bosnia-Herzegovina. That's about a third of the implementation force. The rest are expected within weeks. The U.S. contingent will be the biggest.
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