The Special Panel on Military Operations on Vieques will meet on Friday from 9 a.m. EDT to noon in Room 400, 1401 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, Va.
On June 9, President Clinton asked Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen to form a special panel "to review the need for operations at Vieques and to explore alternative sites or methods that would meet the Department's needs." Atlantic Fleet Weapons Training Facility uses portions of Vieques Island, Puerto Rico, as a training facility and range.
The panel is chaired by Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Management Policy Frank Rush. The other panel members are Rep. Lee Hamilton, former chairman of the House Foreign Relations Committee; retired Marine Corps Gen. Richard Neal, former assistant Marine Corps commandant; and retired Navy Vice Adm. Diego Hernandez, former commander, Third Fleet.
Gov. Pedro Rossell, governor of Puerto Rico, is scheduled to address the panel at this session.
The meeting will be open to the media, although space is limited. For more information, contact Lt. Col. Catherine Abbott, Directorate for Defense Information, at (703) 697-5134.
