WASHINGTON - President Bill Clinton has decided the United States will support three countries - Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic - as new NATO members at the alliance's July summit in Madrid.
Mr Clinton's spokesman, Mr Michael McCurry, indicated the decision would be relayed officially shortly to governments of the other 15 alliance members by the Defence Secretary, Mr William Cohen, and that it will be non-negotiable.
Asked if Washington risked being isolated on the issue as nine of the 16 NATO members have supported bringing additional central European countries in, Mr McCurry said that was unlikely. France has strongly backed Romania's candidacy and Italy Slovenia's.
However, Mr McCurry said Washington believes those two countries need "more time to fully develop their capacities within the parameters of the Partnership for Peace Programme" launched by NATO in 1994 to give associate status to former Soviet satellite states.