Dana Priest. (File)

Wednesday, July 21, 1999

In the first deaths of American peacekeepers in Kosovo, two U.S. soldiers were killed and three suffered minor injuries Monday when their armored personnel carrier overturned.

Dana Priest, the Post's Pentagon reporter, discussed the accident and other developments in the ongoing U.S. peacekeeping efforts in Kosovo.

A Post reporter for 13 years, Priest started out as an assistant foreign editor and then became a Metropolitan staff reporter. After joining the National staff nine years ago, Priest covered federal regulatory issues and went to Baghdad to write about American hostages being held in Iraq.

Priest has covered the Pentagon for the past four years. Her reporting has taken her to Bosnia to write about U.S. troops stationed there and on overseas trips with defense secretaries William Perry and William Cohen. She has also written extensively about the Army's efforts to integrate women into the workforce.

Read the transcript below:

Washingtonpost.com: Welcome to our live discussion with Post reporter Dana Priest. Thank you for joining us Dana. Since the end of the allied bombing campaign, we've heard reports of ethnic Albanian retaliation against the Serbs and a sense of a growing power vacuum in Kosovo? Can you tell us a bit more about the environment the peacekeeping forces are operating in?

Dana Priest: Nice to be with you again. It's still quite difficult to get a handle on the all the competing forces and to see how this will work out. Yes, there is a segment of the KLA forces who continue to take revenge against Serbs and these incidents appear to be growing in number. Officially of course, the KLA has pledged not to continue its paramilitary actions. The Russians too have become a factor--more anticipated than real right now--and the U.S. and other allies are watching carefully to see whether the Russian presence creates a kind of sanctuary for Milosevic supporters. The civilian opposition to Milosevic's regime is growing but still highly unorganized. Peacekeepers from different nations have responded differently to apparent infringements to the military technical agreement that implements the end of the war. Some have looked the other way, others have chosen to enforce it to the letter of the law.

Washington, D.C. : Dana, Do you think the deaths of the two Americans in Kosovo would have been a bigger deal if not for the Kennedy ordeal? It seems the news media really dropped the ball here...

Dana Priest: Perhaps. You are right that on any given day, what The Post and other newspapers chose to display on the front page is determined by what else comes along in the day's news. But I don't think it would have been necessarily front page--and I don't believe the US casualties in Bosnia were either--because they were not killed by hostile fire. In peacetime, many more soldiers die in accidents and on training exercises in one year than die from deployment-related activities.

Arlington, VA: It seems that starting with the Gulf War, we've lost more casualties to friendly fire and accidents than any particular enemy-related injury. What's going on with our military? Are our soldiers well-equipped to fight? Are they too young to handle such expensive equipment? What's the deal?

Dana Priest: You anticipated my last answer. Statistically speaking, the number of accidents--even flying mishaps--have declined dramatically in the last 20 years. The force is actually more better educated, and its tougher to even volunteer to join any service. On the other hand, I think we in the media tend to cover accidents in a bigger way than perhaps our colleagues 20 years ago so that may explain why it appears there is a large jump. I would refer you to a series that ran a few years ago in The Boston Globe if you want more information on accidents and why they occur.

Rosslyn, Virginia: How are the Russian and US forces interacting now in Kosovo? There was so much tension when the Russians first entered the territory.

Dana Priest: I don't think there's much actual interaction and I think both sides are still very wary about how all of this will work out. The Cold War attitudes--and perhaps motivations--die hard in military circles. In fact, the agreement about where the Russians will be stationed and what exactly they will patrol is still being worked out. On the U.S. side, the fear is that the Russians will somehow be able to nullify some of the painful political changes that NATO officials hope the end of the war agreement will force the Serbs to accept. It's hard to tell right now whether this is an overreaction or not.

Washington, D.C. : Dana,

Why hasn't NATO fully disarmed the KLA? I understand that the British and the U.S. are relatively consistent about that but other NATO countries like Italy or France are not as thorough. Is this true? Also, are there still incidents of retaliation against Serbs in Kosovo?

Dana Priest: I believe it still is. Each nation has their own "rules of engagement" which supercedes the NATO rules of engagement they all have. These national rules and, perhaps more importantly, the national attitudes towards certain groups is indeed reflected in how their boot on the ground have acted when confronted with enforcing more difficult parts of the end-of-the-war agreement. Predictably, the US and British troops, whose nations were always more hawkish in the war, have taken a harder line. I would judge the French and Italian troop actions through the larger political prism too. What will be interesting is whether the larger NATO organization is able to bring pressure on certain national troop commands to be more diligent. In other words, the kinds of coalition warfare we heard so much about during the war is alive and kicking during the peace enforcement stage.

Cleveland, Ohio: When there is a multinational force as in Kosovo, is there much mixing among the troops. In other words, do the troops from different countries develop friendships, get to know each other. Or do they just mix with their own countrymen?

Dana Priest: From personal experience in Bosnia, I can say that there is some "mixing" that goes on, especially among the troops from smaller countries that are stationed within the American, French, British...ect sectors. In Bosnia, for example, American troops were always commenting to me about what they saw in the Russian barracks--the poor quality of the food, clothing, etc. And they got a kick out of interacting with troops who used to be the enemy. Commanders from many nations have daily working interactions in these circumstances. The same is true in Kosovo.

Rosslyn, Va.: This question has more to do with your work itself than what you cover. As a journalist covering the military, how do you deal with the very secretive nature of the military? It seems like trying to see through a brick wall.

Dana Priest: I've certainly had the sensation of hitting a brick wall many, many times while covering the military. I've found that building trust--getting to know individuals and having them get to know me--is one way these walls crumble. As much frustration as there is sometime, it has been the most personally rewarding beat I've had at the Post, both in terms of the experiences I've had and the people I've met.

Washington, D.C. : Given the amount of time many soldiers are spending over in Kosovo, have you heard any stories of troops developing relationships with some of the local villagers? Are there any prohibitions against this or guidelines?

Dana Priest: I haven't heard about this in Kosovo yet, but things things happened on many levels in Bosnia. I once did a story about an Army company that was responsible for the Srebrenica, where the infamous executive of Muslim men took place. The company members got to know some of the kids and became quit determined to help them out--repainting the school, doing clothing drives with their families back home--because of the personal relationship they developed. There were also a couple of marriages and romances between the soldiers and the female translators at the various camps. Pretty predictable stuff actually.

Virginia Beach: It has often been said that the Russian presence in Kosovo makes the Serbs feel more comfortable. But would the Russian troops necessarily intervene on behalf of the Serbs over the Kosovars? Do they have a real bias in this case?

Dana Priest: Well, the Russians were dead-set against the NATO bombing campaign, so many people view that as a bias. There has been some reporting on incidents in which the Russians appears to be helping the Serbs, and they were certainly allied with them in the past. Again, it is not yet apparent whether this will amount to a big deal or not. On the other hands, I have to say that NATO has been very pro-Albanian, although this is not their official line. They were, of course, during the war and in the months leading up to it. There's a fair amount of criticism of just how uneven the treatment was before the war, and how NATO and US officials working in Kosovo ignored serious KLA actions--drug running, murder of opponents, smuggling, etc.

Washington, DC: What role have women played in the US peacekeeping force? Also, how do other NATO countries involved in the Kosovo mission use female troops?

Dana Priest: Women in the U.S. forces play exactly the same role they have in Bosnia--you'll find the largest concentration in the MPs and military intelligence jobs, for example. They are prohibited from armor, artillery, infantry jobs--the combat arms--except in certain headquarters units. During the war there were a couple of female fighter pilots, but they kept a very low profile. The participation of women in the armed forces is generally very small. For many, seeing and working with female US soldiers and fliers is a novelty.

Fairfax, VA: What is the current role of the Marines in Kosovo?

Has their mission been given to the Army?

What percentage of the "patrols" are foot vs. mech.?

Dana Priest: There were originally 2,000 Marines in the eastern part of the US sector. They performed the typically peacekeeping mission--patrolling, monitoring arms cache, etc. They are in the process of leaving and will be replaced by Army troops.

Washingtonpost.com: We're halfway through our live discussion with the Post's Dana Priest. Submit questions by clicking on the hyperlink below.

Arlington, VA: The blame war between the US and the UN seems to go on and on. Is the US trying to gain more power in the situation or is the UN really moving slowly?

Dana Priest: I'd have to say the U.N. is moving at a snail's pace. It's fairly remarkable, given the lead time they had to get prepared and the so-called "lessons learned" from Bosnia and other peacekeeping deployment. In general, the international civilian community is just adequately organized to deal with these crisis and because of that, I would argue, they actually end up ceding a lot of power to the military--which is organized by nature and on the ground in huge numbers and with unparalleled amounts of equipment. The military complains about having to take on these tasks and I think their complaints are genuine because it "costs" delays the return of their troops and it is not inherently the kind of missions they like. Of course, if you look behind these arguments, I think you see that it is really the countries of the U.N., most prominently the United States, that is failing to meet these civilian challenges.

Arlington, Virginia: Have the military brass developed a contingency plan in the case of renewed fighting between the Serbs and the KLA? If so, what is the plan?

Dana Priest: Good question. I think the contingency plan can be found within the "military technical agreement." As far as I know, there is not a plan to quickly shuttle in more than the 50,000 troops planned for the peacekeeping deployment. But one reason each of the major countries has a sector of its own, is to organize their own troops to be able to respond to crisis within their sectors. Nor is there a detailed contingency plan for Montenegro, by the way---deja vu all over again!

Bethesda, Maryland: Dana,

Do the soldiers get the feeling that the Kosovo issue has been largely forgotten in the U.S. Has this affected morale? How about the soldiers who are still in Bosnia--have they begun to wonder why they are there--or wonder if their country still cares?

Dana Priest: Hard to say whether the troops in Kosovo fell forgotten. I kind of doubt it, since they still receive a fair amount of coverage. They definitely feel that way in Bosnia, though. Some soldiers seem personally affected by the larger world's inattention to them. Others not.

Rockville, MD: Military, schmilitary. How necessary do you think our forces will be in the future? I think NATO and other international organizations, if given the room and time, can resolve our international problems.

Dana Priest: Not if they don't get their act together soon. The military, whether it wants to or not, is stepping into the vacuum more and more. Just look at the different funding, staff and equipment resource levels between the State Department and DOD. And compare the US commitment to the United Nations, as measured in its chronic arrears problem, with the US financial commitment to its military. My reporting suggests it will take much more than "room and time" for international organizations to become more effective. It will take political will and determination that obviously does not exist right now. The exception here is the international relief NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) who have gotten better and better at what they do.

Alexandria, VA: I read with interest yesterday's article on armed forces low pay. However, when I calculated the figures provided, it appeared to me that pay was respectable, especially for 18 - 24 year old privates. It certainly compares with teacher's salaries, and with college grads entering the business world, not to mention that the military personnel receive support for their futures. Any opinion on pay? I don't disagree that it's hard to feel very secure raising a family on that pay, but it's hard on young professional civilians too, who don't receive the subsidies these youngsters do.

Dana Priest: I think the figures speak for themselves. The hardship cases are usually those involving families of junior service members.

Alexandria, VA: You said troops in Bosnia felt the inattention. I didn't know we still were pursuing efforts there. What type of stuff -peacekeeping, rebuilding, etc- are we doing there?

Dana Priest: There are about 6,200 (to be perhaps reduced later to 4,000) US troops in Bosnia and they are doing what they have been doing for several years now--patrolling the zones that separate the formerly warring, ethnic groups; monitoring military arms and exercises; trying to keep calm in towns and villages, etc.

Alexandria, VA: I have a friend who just entered the Naval Academy. What do you see as the future use of U.S. Navy -and the other branches-? Kosovo and Iraq were mostly long-range operations, but also we were fighting a much less powerful opponent. Will this be the future trend?

Dana Priest: Big question. I'll give just a small answer: During NATO's air war, the Navy proved to be considerably more flexible (and thus relevant) in certain situations, than the Air Force. To the other extreme was the Army, which proved slow-moving and rather unenthusiastic about its role. The Army, many experts say, has not adapted adequately to the new world. Their equipment and organization still best prepares them to fight large-scale, conventional wars.

New York, NY: Dana, has the military developed any further the plans for an exit strategy from this Kosovo mess?

Dana Priest: I've seen no indication of it. I would predict a years-long deployment unless Milosevic packs his bags soon. That is always a possibility of course. No one predicted he would give in when he did.

Waldorf, MD: What's your cut on the B-2 and it's first "combat" action?

Dana Priest: It "performed" as advertized and on several nights was the only plane that could precede with its mission in the bad weather. Since the B-2 is so expensive, I think it's still worth knowing just how much it's unique capabilities cost the U.S. in this deployment. Despite official Air Force information to contrary, the B-2 does fly with supporting air defense planes.

Arlington, Virginia: At the end of the Cold War, the size of the military was very much the "issue-celebre." But so far I've heard very little from the current presidential candidates about the military. Is it too thorny an issue to deal with early on?

Dana Priest: I bet they don't have a clue yet where they want to be on the issue. The service chiefs are asking for more troops so it is probably not an issue they will be able to avoid for long.

Bethesda, Maryland: Why does the U.S. keeping trying to fight a war without death?? It's ridiculous what they're trying to do. When the two soldiers in Kosovo died this week, the military was very quick to point out how they died -not in combat-. Why has the US shifted so far towards unrealistic goals?

Dana Priest: I don't really have an answer except to say that this feeling thoroughly penetrated the development of NATO's first air war. U.S. political and military leaders calculated that American casualties would cause the public to turn against the war quickly. This feeling was less acute in Britain and France. So I would look for the answer within public opinion and within the national leadership that tries to shape it--or not.

Dana Priest: I know you all would rather be eating lunch now, so I'll sign off. Nice to be with you and I look forward to our next "chat." Cheers, Dana

Washingtonpost.com: Thanks for joining us Dana and thanks to all who participated.