SARAJEVO, Jul 30 (Hina) - The outgoing IFOR commander in Bosnia-
Herzegovina, Admiral Leighton Smith, was given a solemn send-off at
the Sarajevo airport, complete with a military ceremony.
Admiral Smith is to be replaced by US Navy Admiral Joseph
Lopez.
Admiral Smith's open and friendly personality had won the
sympathies of the Bosnian media, which invariably presented him as
a resolute and capable officer who would not allow anyone to mess
around with NATO.
Bosnian Prime Minister Hasan Muratovic, however, did not miss
the occasion to point out to Admiral Smith that he had not
completed his job.
"The demarcation line in the Dobrinja neighbourhood has never
been defined," he reminded Smith in a letter, adding that "IFOR's
wavering and malleability had contributed to keeping the issue
pending in a way that serves the interests of the Serb entity."
Admiral Lopez is an officer with combat experience from
Vietnam and a former Sixth Fleet commander. As the first man of
NATO's Rapid Reaction forces in 1993, he already has some
experience with the Bosnian war. But the challenge Lopez is going
to face now is no longer open war but rather what has been termed
"low-intensity conflicts".
To deal with this challenge, fresh military police units
equipped with jeeps and heavy machine-guns are on their way to
Bosnia. IFOR commanders estimate that in the circumstances, such
forces will be more effective than tanks and multiple rocket
launchers.
If, as has been announced, IFOR is dispatched to support the
international police mission in Mostar, this will be the first big
test for Admiral Lopez and his forces.
(hina) mm as
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