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DATE=6/29/2000 TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT TITLE=CONGRESS/COLOMBIA-KOSOVO (S/L) NUMBER=2-263916 BYLINE=PAULA WOLFSON DATELINE=CAPITOL HILL CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: After months of political wrangling, the U-S House of Representatives has approved legislation that provides billions of dollars to fight drugs in Colombia and support peacekeeping in Kosovo. V-O-A's Paula Wolfson reports the Senate is expected to follow suit later today (by close of business Friday) and send the bill to the President, who has pushed hard for the funds. TEXT: The money is part of an eleven-point-two billion-dollar emergency spending bill that began its path through Congress early in the year. The House approved its initial version in March, but the legislation bogged down in the Senate. It took steady pressure from Colombian leaders and the Pentagon to get Senators to move on the measure. Even then, there were differences in language between the House and Senate that took weeks to resolve. The compromise bill includes one-point-three billion dollars to help Colombia battle drug producers. It also allocates two billion dollars to pay for peacekeeping operations in Kosovo. /// REST OPT FOR USE IN LONG CR /// The Colombia aid has been a priority for House Speaker Dennis Hastert and the White House. But there has been substantial opposition from lawmakers who fear the United States could get dragged into another country's civil war. Much of the money will be used to purchase military equipment and train special anti- drug troops that will operate in the guerilla controlled regions of the country. By putting the money for Colombia into a bill that also provides emergency funds for many congressional districts, House Republican leaders assured its passage. The vote in support of the compromise legislation was substantial. Three-hundred-six members voted for the bill, 110 voted no. (Signed) NEB/PW/KBK 29-Jun-2000 22:06 PM EDT (30-Jun-2000 0206 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America .