
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, June 17, 1993                   TAG: 9306170170
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-12   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Short

HOUSE ENDORSES CALL FOR RUSSIAN AID

The House endorsed President Clinton's plea for aid to the former Soviet Union on Wednesday and sent a signal of support to Russian President Boris Yeltsin's attempts at post-Cold War reform.

Voting 317-118, lawmakers rejected a spirited attempt to slash $704 million earmarked for Russia in a $904 million package for the country and other republics of the former Soviet Union.

Earlier in the day, President Clinton defended his aid package as a sound investment for the United States that will result in joint business ventures and a continued effort in the one-time superpower to dismantle its costly arsenal of nuclear weapons.

The Russian assistance is part of a fiscal 1994 foreign aid authorization bill that provides $9.3 billion in financing.

All members of the Virginia delegation voted against the bill. - Associated Press

by CNB