May 16, 1972
Page 17577
Mr. MUSKIE. Mr. President, I support the Case-Church amendment, as modified by the 4-month withdrawal deadline, because of the vital need to end American involvement in Indochina as soon as is humanly possible.
I have for some time urged a simple, straightforward proposal to accomplish this end:
termination of all U.S. military activities in Indochina by a date certain in exchange for an agreement to return our prisoners and to guarantee the safety of our withdrawing troops. I do not suggest other conditions because I do not think we should try to determine, as an outside power, the political terms of a settlement that can only be decided by the Vietnamese people themselves.
The Byrd amendment proposes to add an internationally supervised cease-fire as a condition for our withdrawal. With all the killing and bloodshed suffered by the Vietnamese people over too many years, an effective cease-fire must certainly be an urgent priority for all those concerned with bringing peace to that tragic land. But I do not believe our continued involvement in the war increases the chances for such a cease-fire. On the contrary, our continued involvement means more bombing, more destruction, and greater loss of human life. It also means increased dangers of a major confrontation with the Soviet Union and China.
I endorse a cease-fire as an important goal – but I must oppose it as a condition of our withdrawal. A cease-fire can only be achieved when both sides want it. A properly supervised cease-fire might require long and difficult negotiations. And it is doubtful that a cease-fire will be reached at all until there is a resolution of the fundamental disagreement concerning the makeup of the government of Saigon.
To insist on such a cease-fire as a precondition of our withdrawal, therefore, is to involve ourselves in the political struggles of the Vietnamese people. We must have the courage to turn away from that struggle and to focus on the need to terminate our own involvement and to bring our prisoners and troops home.
For these reasons I will vote against the Byrd amendment today.
Mr. SPONG. Mr. President, I will support the Byrd amendment to the Case-Church amendment.
This is consistent with the position which I took on the Mansfield amendment. Our Nation has been involved in hostilities in Vietnam for over a decade. Our presence there has contributed to those hostilities. It would be rather irresponsible for us to leave without trying to bring about a cease-fire, without attempting to end the hostilities in which so many are dying and where so much destruction is taking place. It is, I believe, conceivable that the time may come when we will have to abandon our hope for a cease-fire but I do not believe that time is upon us now. I am prepared to support the Case-Church amendment.