Text:
Pentagon spokesman Ken Bacon briefed.

Following is the Pentagon transcript of the briefing:

(begin transcript)

DoD News Briefing Mr. Kenneth H. Bacon, ASD (PA) Tuesday, May 27, 1997 - 1:30 p.m.

................

Q: Has the Pentagon yet figured out the bottom line of what Boris Yeltsin said today?

A: This is not primarily a Pentagon issue. As you know, President Yeltsin met with President Clinton after he made his remarks and there's been a briefing over there by the Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, and also by the National Security Advisor, Sandy Berger. We believe that President Yeltsin was talking about detargeting, which has already taken place, and perhaps an expansion of that detargeting. But the way detargeting operates is that basically a code card is taken out of the missile. So detargeting takes out some instructions, and without the instructions, it can't, if there were to be an accidental launch, the missile would not go anyplace in particular and could be destroyed after launch.

We don't think there's, at this point, a significant new initiative on his part.

Q: Do you think he extended it to the other members of NATO?

A: I think you should look at the briefing, which I've only glanced at, that Secretary Albright and Sandy Berger gave. They're on the scene. The President discussed this with President Yeltsin. They should speak to the details of this.

........

(end transcript) NNNN