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

DATE: TUESDAY, October 24, 1995                   TAG: 9510240072
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: The Washington Post
DATELINE: HYDE PARK, N.Y.                                LENGTH: Medium

SUMMIT OFFERS FEW SOLUTIONS

Clinton reported what he called ``some progress'' over the question of how Russian forces would fit with what is proposed to be a large NATO force to go to Bosnia if the warring parties there reach a peace settlement, but he refused to elaborate.

Yeltsin has said he will not tolerate putting Russian troops under NATO command, and he did not back off from that position Monday. But both leaders expressed optimism that progress on the details on how to run the peace force could be achieved when Defense Secretary William Perry and his Russian counterpart, Pavel Grachev, meet later this week.

And that, both leaders asserted, was all they cared to say about unpleasant differences at a meeting that they said otherwise flowed with good feeling.

``The more we say about this, the worse things will be,'' said Clinton.

The Hudson Valley home of Franklin D. Roosevelt was in full autumn glory for the summit, which began with a bear hug between the two leaders and ended with a rollicking joint news conference in which Yeltsin referred repeatedly to his good friend Bill. Yeltsin sent Clinton into hysterics with a curmudgeonly dismissal of the Russian and U.S. differences.

The Russian leader said he had read the news reports about how the split could turn Monday's summit into ``a disaster'' and confessed he had arrived here filled with ``a lot of apprehensions.'' But, afterward, he told reporters he had reached a different conclusion: ``Now, for the first time, I can tell you that you [journalists] are a disaster.''

``Be sure you get the right attribution there,'' Clinton said, his body shaking with laughter.

It wasn't clear before the summit that all would be so jolly. At his speech in New York Sunday for the 50th anniversary of the United Nations, Yeltsin had complained that NATO was improperly taking over planning for the Bosnian force from the United Nations and said the proposed expansion of NATO eastward threatened to spark new conflict in Europe.

NATO expansion barely came up at the summit sessions, U.S. officials said; the nearly four hours of meetings between the two leaders concentrated on Bosnia. And here they made a calculated, stubborn decision to accentuate the positive.

``We agreed today that Russian armed forces will participate in [peacekeeping operations],'' said Yeltsin, although the question of whether - never mind how - had been regarded as solved long ago.

Trying to reconcile his optimism with his sour comments Sunday, Yeltsin scolded reporters: ``You are underestimating the presidents of two great powers. Maybe you can't quite figure out how we solve it, but it came to us.''

A U.S. official acknowledged later that the two were being ``somewhat Delphic,'' but said that was intentional. While the differences haven't been solved, one senior administration official said, it remains the possibe that Perry and Grachev, who will meet Friday in Washington, can stitch together some sort of patchwork arrangement that will satisfy both sides.

For the United States, the issue is keeping military command and control tightly under NATO authority. The Pentagon regards dispersal of authority as a recipe for a military disaster, particularly if the United Nations is in charge.