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Arms-control treaty would be largest in history
Bush: Deal would balance military power
W ASHINGTON - President Bush on Thurs
day hailed a tentative accord requiring the
Soviet Union to destroy thousands of tanks,
artillery pieces and armored vehicles in Eu
rope, saying it would “decisively improve the
balance of military power” on the continent.
The Conventional Forces in Europe treaty
would be the largest arms-control deal in his
tory and the first in Europe since the end of
World War II.
If final details arc resolved, it will be signed
by the 22 nations of the Warsaw Pact and the
NATO alliance at the Nov. 19-21 Paris summit
of the 34-nation Conference on Security and
Cooperation in Europe.
The accord would set a ceiling on non
nuclear forces for both alliances.
Each side would be limited to 20,000 tanks,
20,000 artillery pieces, 30,000 armored com
bat vehicles and 2,(KM) helicopters in the area
stretching from Europe’s Atlantic Coast to the
Ural Mountains inside the Soviet Union.
The two sides are still grappling with over
all limits on combat aircraft for each military
alliance.
However, after long negotiations, they agreed
to a limit of 5,150 warplanes in any single
country, Secretary of State James A. Baker III
announced at a joint appearance with Bush.
The agreement docs not put any limit on the
number of soldiers. The United States and
Soviet Union agreed to skip that step in order to
meet the Paris deadline.
Within the overall ceilings, no country could
have more than 13,300 tanks, 13,700 artillery
pieces and 1,500 helicopters in the region.
On Capitol Hill, Senate Majority Leader
George Mitchell, D-Mainc, called the announce
ment of the tentative accord good news.
He said he hoped there would be ‘ ‘early and
enthusiastic approval” of the agreement in the
Senate early next year.
Bush said that despite the collapse of hard
line communist regimes in Eastern Europe, the
continent ‘‘is still the site of the greatest con
centration of armed strength in the world.”
‘‘As Europe is transformed politically, we
must also redraw the military map of the con
tinent and lift some of the shadows and fears
that we and our allies have lived with for nearly
half a century,” the president said.
Bush said the treaty would ensure that “the
political transformation of Europe is matched
in the military field.”
He pledged full support to conclude the
agreement, calling it ‘‘a treaty that would
decisively improve the balance of military
power on the continent and back our hopes for
lasting stability.”
Baker and Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard
Shevardnadze agreed in principle on major
elements of the treaty during a five-hour nego
tiating session Wednesday.
The two officials will meet again in New
York today to press toward agreement on a
separate treaty slashing their nuclear arsenals.
Budget package debate
heads toward first vote
WASHINGTON - A wary House
debated the $500-billion deficit
reduction plan Thursday night as
the election-year package of tax
boosts and spending cuts moved
toward its first, uncertain congres
sional test.
After a week of intense arm
twisting by President Bush and
congressional leaders from both
parties, top lawmakers spoke bravely
of gamering majorities of Demo
crats and Republicans. One GOP
official said Bush was hunting for
votes over the telephone even as
debate began.
The first votes would be on an
outline of the five-year plan that
Bush and congressional leaders
completed last weekend after four
months of bargaining. Voles on
specific spending cuts and tax in
creases were planned in two weeks.
But with legislators leery of the
plan s Medicare slashes, mgner
gasoline taxes and other painful
items, vote-counters acknowledged
that they remained uncertain of the
support they needed.
The problem was especially acute
among House Republicans, who,
one official said, remained 11 votes
shy of providing a majority of their
176 members.
“It is the best thing that we
coulddoallhispomi,” Rep. James
Quillen, R-Tenn., said as debate
began. “If we have to hold our
nose and vote for this, let’s do it.’’
“We’re going to have a major
ity when we get there,’’ said Sen
ate Majority Leader George Mitch
ell, D-Maine.
The first votes would be on an
outline of the five-year plan that
Bush and congressional leaders
completed last weekend after four
months of bargaining. Votes on
specific spending cuts and lax in
creases were planned in two weeks.
Bush has threatened that unless
Congress approves the outline b>
today, he will reject any extensior
of the temporary financing legisla
lion that has kept the govemmen
operating since the new fiscal year
began Monday. That financing
expires tonight.
As part of what administration
officials have called the Bush presi
dency’s most intense lobbying
campaign, the president brought
60 GOP lawmakers to the White
House Thursday morning to press
for votes.
Maverick Republicans spoke of
getting phone calls at home from
Bush, Vice President Dan Quayle,
White House Chief of Staff John
Sununu and even former President
Gerald Ford.
“The president called me at a
quarter to seven in the morning,
and Sununu called two hours later,”
said Rep. Gerald Solomon, R-N.Y.,
who opposes the plan. “They’re
not threatening me, and they better
not.”
Pressure was applied in the
Capitol as well, with Commerce
Secretary Robert Mosbacher among
those roaming the halls. Foley and
others emphasized that lawmakers
could support the outline now and
then work for changes in details
during the next two weeks.
“Foley has been pleading and
pleading and pleading,” said one
Democratic aide.
Opposition w ithin Bush's own
Republican Parly came from con
servatives, who complained about
the package’s SI 34 billion in new
taxes, and spending cuts they con
sidered too shallow.
But the package, which would
save $40 billion in the new fiscal
year, has something for all law
makers to dislike, including tax
increases and spending cuts that
would affect virtually every Ameri
can.
Droves of liberal Democrats
expressed displeasure with the plan,
complaining that its taxes and spend
ing cuts came down too harshly on
the poor and frail. They railed most
bitterly about its Medicare reduc
tions and some $ 11 billion in small
business lax breaks that they said
were merely tax shelters for the
i rich.
“This package represents the
wrong values,” said Rep. Thomas
Downey, D-N.Y. “Democrats have
made an art form of explaining to
the American voter how the rich
aren’t taxed, and then we produce
a package that doesn’t hit them.”
Republican candidate may end
bid for Louisiana senate seat
BATON ROUGE, La. - The Re
publican Senate candidate pulled his
radio commercials and canceled public
appearances Thursday, feeding specu
lation he will drop out of the race to
keep ex-Ku Klux Klan leader David
Duke out of a runoff.
Ben Bagert had been endorsed by
President Bush, but national party
leaders said they feared his consistent
third-place showing in polls would
prevent anyone from getting more
than half of the vote in Saturday’s
primary election, forcing the top two
into a runoff.
That presumably would mean a
runoff between Duke, running as a
Republican without party endorse
ment, into a runoff with Sen. Bennett
Johnston, a Democrat.
Kelly Johnston, deputy political
director of the Republican Senate
Campaign Committee, said a runoff
between Johnston and Duke “would
be the worst possible thing that could
happen to us.”
It would allow Democrats across
the nation to link any Republican in
the November general election to Duke,
she said.
On Wednesday, eight Republican
senators in Washington urged Louisi
ana voters to reject Duke.
Duke represents hatred and big
otry, and Bagert can’t win, the sena
tors said.
“All of us would be embarrassed
and mortified to have to serve in the
United Stales Senate with David Duke
masquerading asa Republican,” Sen.
John Danforth, R-Mo., said Wednes
day.
WWL-AM radio reported Thurs
day that Bagert had canceled his
commercials. Bagerl’s office didn't
confirm that but said he had canceled
his campaign schedule and set an
afternoon news conference at his home
in New Orleans.
If Bagert does indeed withdraw, it
would essentially make Saturday’s
election a two-man race between
Johnston, an 18-ycar incumbent, and
Duke, a first-term state representa
tive.
Workers at Bagcrt’s campaign
headquarters said they had not been
told anything about his possible w uh
drawal. i
Filipino rebels
willing to talk
to government
CAGAYAN DEORO,Philippines
- A rebel leader whose troops seized
two military garrisons without firing
a shot said today he was willing to
negotiate with the government.
There was no immediate word on
the proposal by Col. Alexander Noble,
but President Corazon Aquino had
earlier urged troops to wipe out the
rebels on the southern island of
Mindanao.
“I’m wailing (to negotiate),’’ said
Noble, who launched the uprising
Thursday. “It’s the people who should
decide what to do with Mindanao.”
Noble said no one had approached
him to open a dialogue. He also did
not elaborate on what he seeks from
the government.
Rebels had earlier dec lared inde
pendence for Mindanao, the nation’s
second largest island.
Noble appeared in complete con
trol of the military garrison today in
the port city of Cagayan de Oro, about
500 miles south of Manila. Noble
said his followers seek to form acivil
lan-military junta to govern Mindanao.
Aquino, who has survived six coup
attempts during her four years in of
fice, promised to crush this revolt,
which broke out before dawn Thurs
day.
The Armed Forces on Thursday
said it would not permit the country to
be “dismembered,” and the nation’s
leading Roman Catholic churchman
called on Filipinos “to close ranks
once again” to defend the govern
ment.
In Cagayan dc Oro, thousands of
people turned out to catch a glimpse
of the mutineers, who marched in a
festive “victory parade” through the
city streets.
On Thursday, die armed forces
went on nationwide alert and Aquino
huddled with her Cabinet and senior
military officers and congressmen at
the presidential palace. Flights to
Mindanao were canceled and schools
on the island were closed.
Soviet envoy brings message
from Gorbachev to Baghdad
A Soviet envoy carried a secret message from Mikhail Gorbachev to |
Baghdad and Japan’s prime minister met with Iraq’s No. 2 leader
Thursday in new efforts for peace in the Persian Gulf. Five Europeans
used a 10-foot boat in a daring escape from Iraq and plans were
announced to evacuate more Americans.
The USS Independence -- the first American aircraft carrier in the
gulf in 16 years - left the waterway after a brief show of force. A Navy
warship enforcing a U.N. embargo on Iraq stopped a Sudanese freighter
from entering the Gulf of Aqaba, the Pentagon said.
Iraq planned to argue its case before the United Nations. The world
body, which has condemned Iraq’s invasion and placed a naval and air
embargo on the country, may consider stronger measures.
At the United Nations, Iraq’s planned address to the General
Assembly was postponed after the nation’s U.N. ambassador suffered
a nose bleed.
Amnassaaor Abdul Amiral-Anban was expected toreadastatemem
in response to President Bush’s suggestion Monday that an uncondi
tional Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait could lead to “opportunities” j
toward a broad Middle East peace settlement. i
U.N. officials said the speech would be rescheduled, possibly lor
Monday.
British Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd, following up on Bush’s
suggestion, said Thursday that Israel must be prepared to negotiate the
Palestinian problem once Iraq withdraws from Kuwait. Iraqi President
Saddam Hussein has tried to link a pullout from Kuwait with Israel’s
occupation of temtorics it captured in the 1967 Middle East war.
Yevgeny Primakov, a senior adviser to Gorbachev, arrived in
Baghdad carrying a message from the Soviet president, Soviet diplo
matic sources said. Its contents were not disclosed. Tass quoted him as
saying in Baghdad that a negotiated solution was needed “to avoid a
military explosion.”
Primakov planned to request that some of about 5,(XX) Soviet
citizens, most oil industry workers, be allowed to leave Iraq, the
diplomatic sources said.
Primakov also met early Thursday with Palestine Liberation Organi
zation chairman Yasser Aralat in Amman, Jordan, and delivered a
message from Gorbachev, said a PLO source who requested anonym
ity.
Aralat met later in Baghdad with Saddam and the two 4‘agreed that
a political solution to the crisis is possible within an Arab context,’ ’ said
a PLO source.
Gorbachev said Thursday he saw no reason to send Soviet troops to
join the U.S.-led multinational force in the gulf. In response to a query.
Gorbachev told reporters in Moscow: “I think there are already more
than enough troops there.”
Nebraskan
Editor Eric Planner
472-1766
Managing Editor Victoria Ayotte
Assoc News Editors Darcie Wiegert
Diane Brayton
Editorial Page Editor Lisa Donovan
Wire Editor Jana Pedersen
Copy Desk Editor Emily Rosenbaum
Graphics Editor John Bruce
Photo Chief Ai Sc ha ben
Night News Editors Matt Herek
Chuck Green
Art Director Brian Shelllto
General Manager Dan Shattll
Professional Adviser Don Walton
473-7301
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