Reply #11: Her meetings with officials appear to have been brief. [View All]

"After visiting refugees and gaining a first-hand assessment of the situation, the first lady had intense talks with President Gligorov and Prime Minister Georgievski,” Holbrooke said in a written statement. “In these talks, one in the Presidential Palace, another in the residence of the American Ambassador, Christopher Hill, Mrs. Clinton pressed the Macedonian government to fully open the border so that Kosovar Albanian refugees could flee the war zone to safety.”

The trip seemed more designed to gain media coverage than to conduct substantive diplomacy, however. Clinton visited the area for less than 12 hours, arriving at 9:20 a.m. and leaving at 5:45 p.m. According to the itinerary provided to news organizations, she arrived at the camp and was briefed on relief efforts at 10 a.m., toured the camp at 11 a.m., and met with nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) at 1:30 p.m.

Her meetings with officials appear to have been brief. Holbrooke is correct on some of the details he mentions, but the meetings all took place within the space of a single afternoon. The itinerary shows photo opportunities for the traveling press at 2:20 p.m. with Prime Minister Branko Crvenkovski at the U.S. Ambassador's Residence; at 2:50 p.m. with President Kiro Gligorov at the president's residence; and at 3:30 p.m. with first lady Gligorov at the president’s residence.

The New York Times reported that her visit to the camp was “so carefully scripted that administration officials chose which refugees Mrs. Clinton would speak with.”


Clinton was concerned about the plight of the people of Kosovo, but almost nothing to indicate she was a major player in border negotiations. We'll give her the benefit of the doubt for traveling to Macedonia and meeting with officials, but the way her statement is phrased, it makes her sound primarily responsible for the United States' efforts in the region.