Prague, 23 May 1997 (RFE/RL/) - U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright is expected to announce shortly that the United States plans to open diplomatic offices in the Bosnian Serb-controlled city of Banja Luka and in the city of Mostar, divided between Bosnian Croats and Muslims.
The announcement is expected to come in a speech she is to deliver in New York tonight.
Albright is expected to say that the United States, in its goal of full implementation of the Dayton Accords and of a single Bosnian state, will be openning "branch offices" of its Sarajevo embassy in Banja Luka and Mostar.
Albright is also expected to announce that in a bid to reverse the tide against free expression in Bosnia, the U.S.-funded radio stations Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Voice of America will expand their capability to reach listeners in Bosnia through new partnership agreements with local radio stations.
The Secretary of State is also expected to announce that the United States will be looking to its allies to contribute $80 million to the UN's International Police Task Force in developing community-based policing in Bosnia.