USA: PENTAGON RELEASE VIDEO OF NATO ATTACKS ON YUGOSLAVIA

(9 Apr 1999) English/Nat

The Pentagon released several cockpit videos on Thursday showing details of NATO attacks against the targets in the Yugoslav Republic.

The footage was the most comprehensive yet shown by the Pentagon of attacks in the Balkans.

Also for the first time, the Pentagon reported inflicting "a significant number of casualties" on Yugoslav army and
police.

Pentagon spokesman Major General Charles Wald told journalists on Thursday that NATO air strikes have achieved many of their objectives in Yugoslavia.

He said that troop staging areas, convoys of military vehicles, bridges, and ammunition and fuel depots had all been hit.

The damage, he said had had a significant effect on Milosevic's military efficiency.

This video, from the cockpit of a U-S fighter, shows 2000-pound laser guided bombs destroying a highway bridge in southern Serbia, five miles north of the Kosovo border.

Replying to questions Wald said that NATO had tried to keep collateral damage to a minimum but that ultimately Milosevic was responsible for the fate of his people.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"We're not focusing on the population, on the Serb civilian population, we're focusing on the military, and that's Milosevic's military. Any of those things that help him sustain his capability to engage in repressive acts against the Kosovo Albanians that has to do with military targeting is fair game. We've gone through those before. And it's regrettable if it's affecting their civilian population, but I think that's in the hands of Milosevic, and that's his decision to make."
SUPER CAPTION: Major General Charles Wald, Vice Director, Strategic Plans and Policy, Joint Staff

This cockpit video, from an F-16, shows an explosives plant being destroyed with what Wald said was "no collateral damage."

The Pentagon spokesman said, once again, that one of the military goals is to degrade Milosevic's capability to attack the Kosovar Albanians.

Wald said that NATO will keep up the airstrikes until Milosevic is ready to stop terrorizing the Albanians.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"I guess from a personal perspective I would tell Milosevic that if you don't understand we're committed by now, you probably ought to start reading the tea leaves."
SUPER CAPTION: Major General Charles Wald, Vice Director, Strategic Plans and Policy, Joint Staff

This video shows an armoured personnel carrier being destroyed.

On Wednesday, Serb authorities allowed foreign media in to Pristina to film what they said was the damage NATO airstrikes have caused there.

The Pentagons says only two targets in the city centre that NATO hit could be termed as damage to civilian facilities.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"I do believe that the collateral damage that has been done by NATO is at an absolute minimum and we take great care in both targeting and in terms of the application of firepower to ensure that collateral damage does not occur. And so if anybody gets the idea that we in any way are responsible for most of the damage to civilian facilities that are not legitimate targets in Pristina, they have the wrong idea."
SUPER CAPTION: Rear Admiral Thomas Wilson, Director for Intelligence, Joint Staff

General Wald says that the U-S base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba is ready to start receiving some of the refugees the U-S has committed to take.

But he said Refugees would not be forced to go to Cuba.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
SUPER CAPTION: Major General Charles Wald, Vice Director, Strategic Plans and Policy, Joint Staff
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