[CPEO-MEF] Navy denies sending letter pledging end to Vieques bombing

[CPEO Moderator <cpeo@cpeo.org>]

Navy denies sending letter pledging end to Vieques bombing

Official says it only mentioned identifying alternative sites.
By Matthew Hay Brown Of The Morning Call

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico | -- The Navy on Tuesday acknowledged sending a
letter to Gov. Sila M. Calderón about Vieques, but a spokesman said it
did not include the ''determination to conclude the Navy practice on the
island'' that she announced last week.

''It is not a written guarantee that we are leaving by May of 2003,''
Navy spokesman Ensign David Luckett said. ''By no means is this the
certification required by Congress prior to ceasing exercises.''

After receiving the communication Friday, Calderón called a news
conference in which she declared ''victory'' and ''jubilation'' in the
long campaign to end the controversial training exercises on the
offshore island.

But Luckett said the letter from Navy Secretary Gordon England said only
that the Navy is in the process of identifying alternative training
sites.

This article can be viewed at:
http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-a9_5viequesoct23.story

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