The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times lead with NATO’s decision to extend the deadline for the Yugoslavian army’s withdrawal from Kosovo. The Washington Post leads with news that Congress has postponed voting on the new spending bill until early next week.
The NYT and LAT leads (and the WP off-lead) all report that Milosevic’s forces now have until October 27 to complete a limited withdrawal from Kosovo. The NYT reports that even if NATO’s demands are met, some 12,000 Yugoslav troops will remain in the province and that the delay might hamper future air and missile strikes against Yugoslav troops due to the influx of observers and humanitarian workers. The NYT also reports that Milosevic’s agreement to allow U2 spy planes to monitor troop activity-regarded as a major concession to NATO-also entails NATO giving the Yugoslav army a weekly schedule of reconnaissance flights.
The Post lead, which makes the front at the NYT, says that although the major budgetary issues have been agreed upon, some smaller negotiations, combined with the sheer enormity of the $500 billion spending bill, have delayed a House of Representatives vote. The WP reports that the vote has been rescheduled for Tuesday at 5 p.m., with the Senate voting immediately afterwards if the bill is passed. The NYT says that wrangling over controversial peanut-free zones on commercial airlines, an issue of special concern to Georgia’s Newt Gingrich, was one of several factors that delayed the vote.
All three weekend papers feature front page stories on the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to the leaders of Northern Ireland’s two main political parties (read: Catholic and Protestant) for their efforts to end sectarian violence in the British province. The committee did not name Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams or mediator extraordinaire George Mitchell-both of whom President Clinton cited as worthy of the prize-as co-winners.
The LAT off-lead reports that the new budget deal shows a marked increase in defense spending, reversing a post cold war trend. Apparently, armed services officials have successfully convinced lawmakers that U.S. defense equipment and troop quality are not keeping pace with the demands being made upon them. Projects supported by the $8.4 billion funding increase include missile defense, military readiness, Bosnia deployment, and the Pentagon’s Y2K problems.
All the weekend papers report the death of Newsweek magazine editor Maynard M. Parker, 58. Parker, who was suffering from pneumonia and leukemia, had been editor of the magazine since 1982. All the papers cite his success as a reporter during the Vietnam War and later as an editor who increased Newsweek’s circulation and visibility. The NYT mentions that his career was “marred by two decisions:” his publishing of the bogus Hitler Diaries and, despite his personal knowledge to the contrary, publishing Joe Klein’s denial of writing “Primary Colors.” The WP, which along with Newsweek is owned by the Washington Post Co., includes the Joe Klein account, but does not mention the Hitler Diaries. All the papers report that colleagues remember Parker as a driven, dedicated and loyal editor.
