4,000 U.S. TROOPS TO REMAIN IN SOMALIA

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

DATE: FRIDAY, April 2, 1993                   TAG: 9304020027
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Medium
4,000 U.S. TROOPS TO REMAIN IN SOMALIA
Army Gen. Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Thursday that 4,000 U.S. troops will remain in Somalia through next year in support of the humanitarian relief operation.
Civil war has contributed to widespread famine in Somalia, and military officials and aid workers have expressed fear that serious malnutrition will return unless a solution can be found to Somalia's clan warfare.
Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Powell said U.S. troops number about 10,000, and he expects the force to drop to about 4,000 during the summer. The U.S. contingent has ranged as high as 20,000 since President Bush began dispatching troops Dec. 9.
Supplementing the support force will be an off-shore, rapid-deployment unit of 1,000 troops.
"We'll probably have something like 4,000 there for this year and also next year's support operation," Powell said.
Powell and Defense Secretary Les Aspin answered the panel's questions on a range of issues, including next year's military budget and homosexuals in the military.
Aspin assured the committee that he will work in tandem with the military, including the joint chiefs, on finding a way to implement President Clinton's plan to end the ban of homosexuals.
Powell took exception with reports that the military is trying to undermine Clinton's efforts, saying there has been "a lot of stupid commentary about the chiefs being insubordinate." The general said "we have heard the president clearly" and will work with Aspin and his staff on the issue.
Aspin has described his $263.4 billion budget for fiscal 1994, beginning Oct. 1, as a "treading water" blueprint that puts off major cuts in weapon systems pending an overall review.

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB