MODERATE BACKS AID TO CONTRAS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000807670004-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 12, 2012
• Sequence Number: 4
• Publication Date: January 4, 1985
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

STAT
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/12 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000807670004-3
'4IA:-1I HERALD
4 January 1985
moderate backs aid to contras
Nicaragua opposition leader:
Political options narrowing
By R.A. ZALDIVAR
Herald Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON - Nicaraguan opposition leader
Arturo Cruz a moderate who has advocated a
political settlement of the guerrilla war in his
country, Thursday issued a surprising call for
restoring U.S. aid to CIA-backed rebels fighting the
Sandinista government.
nfortunate y, political options are narrowing in
my country, so I must be realistic and state what I
state," Cruz told reporters at a news conference.
"It would be a terrible political mistake to
withdraw aid," he added.
Cruz's endorsement of aid to the anti-Sandinista
insurgents known as contras comes at a time when
the Reagan administration may find it difficult to
assemble congressional support for it.
A suspension of aid to the contras is in effect until
Feb. 28. Though the president is expected to ask
Congress for more money in March, getting the votes
will not be easy. The House has voted in the past to
cut funds to the rebels. In the Senate, the departure of
two Republicans is expected to make it harder for an
aid package to pass.
Cruz said his goal remains a peaceful solution to
the political schism in Nicaragua. But without a
military threat, he doubted that the Marxist-inspired
Sandinista government would be serious about
negotiating.
"For any solution to be feasible, it is essential to
discuss matters from a position of strength," he said.
"Otherwise, the Sandinistas become more inflexible.
"Suspension of aid does not necessarily mean the
end of the struggle, but certainly it could be critical."
Cruz, a development banker by training, was part
of the opposition to late Nicaraguan President
Anastasio Somoza, who was overthrown by the
Sandinistas five years ago.
He served as a member of the governing junta and
later as ambassador to Washington, a post he
resigned because of disagreement with the increas-
ingly Marxist orientation of the Sandinistas.
Cruz was selected as the , candidate for an
opposition coalition in Nicaragua's November elec-
tion. But the coalition boycotted the vote, claiming
the Sandinistas had stacked the deck in their favor.
Cruz called the CIA's covert assistance pro ram a
qualified success. although after three years an(I 58U
mi ion, t e contras aze facing increasingly stronger
Sandinista forces.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/12 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000807670004-3