NICARAGUA'S AMERICAN LAWYERS PREPARE CASE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP91-00587R000200740048-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: June 25, 2010
• Sequence Number: 48
• Publication Date: September 8, 1985
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/06/29: CIA-RDP91-00587R000200740048-9
ARTICLE APPS Ep _ NEW YORK TIMES
ON PAGE8 September 1985
Nicaragua's American Lawyers Prepare ase
Nations, is such that Washington would Administration used for baMcing_tlre
By SHIRLEY CHRISTIAN I not receive fair treatment in this case. c
so.cia to m. Now Yet Tim.. !1 One official said the Sandinistas former 11 A- 9 11 UV=. MY. c se.
WASHINGTON, Sept 7 - Relying ,wanted "not justice but publicity.' h~ p p~ y even-etlgress
heavily on American lawyers and wit- Despite that view, state Department umny as nQ ran c
A , the Government of Nicaragua officials said the department's Latin pees w
try to prove in proceedings opening American bureau and its legal experts o cialsa have said the San.-
at. the World Court next week that the had argued internally, that the United dinistas tacitly acknowledged several
United States controls and directs States ought to take pah in the case, years ago that aid might be going from
Nicaraguan rebels in violation of inter- but they were overruled by Secretary Nicaragua to the Salvadoran guerrillas
but maintained it was from individu-
nationsk law. of State George P. Shultz.
top lawyer during. the Kennedy Admin-
.istration, said this week that he and
other members of the legal team work-
iinngg for Nicaragua would argue that the
ften referred to as the con-
f
b
,
orce, o
el
re
tras, was an "agent" of the Reagan Ad- phisticated electroni c interception ms-
the United States chinery that it has all over Honduras"
ministrationand that
was responsible for its actions. to break Nicaraguan military codes
and to find elite irmista cwmrmtenin-
i s
Hague, seat of the Worms Lmm, wmun
is formally called the International
Court of Justice.
Addressing a longstanding United
States accusation, the lawyers for
Nicaragua said they would acknowl-
edge that the M tw alvadGovernment
oran guer-
rillas supplied weapons o
rillas for the big January 1961 offensive
against the United States-backed Gov-
ernment in El Salvador. But they will
argue that there is no credible evidence
of sustained arms shipments since
then.
The Nicaraguan Government filed
its suit in April 1964, charging that the,
United States was conducting military
and paramilitary activities against
l
i
ona
Nicaragua in violation of internat
law, including the charters of the
'United Nations and the Organization of
American States.
The United States initially argued
t the international court lacked
h
a
t
jurisdiction in the case, and after the
court held that it did have Jurisdiction,
r in January
the Administration not participate further.
to no
American officials said the makeup
of the court, an agency of the United
LVl Ui a lOea. %v , .,?? - - SM. pp.~ auw w.. ?.o --tea --
ton firm has represented Nicaragua Wsed" Nicaragua that it should rat un-
sirnce1979, said former rebel leaders dertake the court suit it it were still in-
would testify on the extent of American valved In arms traffic to El Salvador.
control over rebel operations. "They assured us from the beginning
surgency battalions. American recon-
naissance planes then fly over northern
Nicaragua to confirm the locations of
the Sandinista forces, he said, and the
information is relayed to the rebels.
The advice is such that the United
States is responsible under interna-
tional law," Mr. Chayes said. "The
contra force is an agent of the United
States."
Mr Reichler said official American
ins o ere is a year ago.
The lawyers said their key wit
rebu e E tes chars u N U02
STAT
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/06/29: CIA-RDP91-00587R000200740048-9