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| NEWS ARTICLE |
Bush Forgives Senegal's $42 Million Debt to U.S.
Nation Encouraged to Send Troops to Liberia
By John E. Yang
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, September 11, 1991; Page A17
President Bush forgave Senegal's $ 42 million debt to the United States yesterday as he encouraged Senegalese President Abdou Diouf to
send troops to Liberia in hopes of breaking the political impasse that has followed a bloody civil war there, according to administration
officials.
By erasing a debt built up largely through purchases of U.S. agricultural products, Bush sought to underscore his support for Senegal, one
of the few multiparty democracies in Africa and an ally that sent troops to the Persian Gulf War.
"Senegal has become one of our closest friends in Africa," Bush told Diouf during welcoming ceremonies on the White House South Lawn.
"Ever since its independence in 1960, Senegal has adhered to the principles of a democratic political system."
A congressional overhaul last year of U.S. farming laws provided the basis for Bush's action yesterday. Included in the new farm bill was a
provision giving the president authority to liquidate food aid debt for nations that are working with international lending agencies to reform
their economies and are short of food.
The Bush administration is liquidating U.S. debt for other developing nations as well, forgiving principal totaling more than $ 1 billion for
Bolivia and Bangladesh in this fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30. The administration also notified Congress it plans to forgive debt totaling
about $ 678 million for nearly a dozen African, Central American and Caribbean nations.
One reason for the flurry of forgiveness now is that any debt liquidated after Oct. 1 will have to be shown on the federal budget as an outlay
under new accounting rules agreed to as part of last year's budget agreement. In most instances, forgiven debt currently does not show up
on the government's books.
During their Oval Office meeting, Bush also pledged financial assistance to Senegal if Diouf sends forces to Liberia, where rival factions
have been unable to enforce a cease-fire they agreed to last year.
Rebel leader Charles Taylor refuses to disarm his troops because he believes the peacekeeping forces in Liberia -- under the sponsorship
of the Economic Community of West African States, which Diouf heads -- are hostile to him.
Diouf told Bush he would be willing to send troops to Liberia "if it would be useful," according to Herman J. Cohen, assistant secretary of
state for African affairs. "The Senegalese would be characterized as being neutral and unbiased," Cohen added.
Diouf and the leaders of four other West African nations plan to meet next week in the Ivory Coast to try to resolve the situation in Liberia by
disarming the rival factions and scheduling a democratic election within six months.
The Liberian civil war, which has claimed an estimated 20,000 lives, began in December 1989 when Libyan-backed followers of Taylor
invaded the country from the Ivory Coast to oust President Samuel Doe. The guerrilla forces split in two, and Liberia has been partitioned
into two zones since October, uprooting the nation's population of 2.5 million.
Diouf has fostered democratic reforms in Senegal, lifting restrictions on political activity shortly after assuming the presidency in 1981 when
Leopold S. Senghor retired. He won 80 percent of the vote when he faced election in 1983.
Senegal contributed 500 troops to the allied effort in the Persian Gulf War. Shortly after the war ended, 93 Senegalese soldiers died in an
airplane crash in Saudi Arabia as they were returning to their base from a pilgrimage to Mecca.
"We mourn your lost countrymen," Bush told Diouf, "but know that they died for the noblest cause of all -- the unstoppable tide of freedom
that today is changing history swiftly, dramatically."
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