WORLD CONCERN WITH ECONOMIC GROWTH FORESEEN

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP99-00418R000100150028-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 15, 2012
• Sequence Number: 28
• Publication Date: November 3, 1988
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

S1 Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/15: CIA-RDP99-00418R000100150028-6
World Concern
With Economic
Growth foreseen
By David Zl .
staff writer
Make money not war.
That's what will be on the minds of superpower lead-
ers during the next decade, fX~o mere di Wi,
liam E.
Colby said Wednesday at a luncheon in 0 aho-
Ammr
While the 1950s and '60s were dominated by military
and strategic concerns and the '70s and '80s by politi-
cal struggles, "the '90s are clearly going to be domi-
nated by something else - economics," Colby said.
Colby, CIA director under Presidents Nixon and
Ford, was the first speaker in this year's OSU Interna-
tional Affairs Forum. Three other experts will partici-
pate in the forum in the coming months.
Colby, a former "superspy" in World War II and now
a high-powered consultant in Washington, D.C., said the
military factor in the international equation is shrink-
ing because of nuclear weapons.
"I think we have developed the consciousness among
both the superpowers that we have to reduce both the
threat of military action against each other and the
extent which we devote to the large military forces we
maintain," he said.
A major force pushing economics to the forefront has
come from Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who real-
izes "they have to do something about that miserable
economy," such as reducing military spending, Colby
said.
But, he said, Gorbachev is being criticized by skepti-
cal citizens, who are demanding more goods in the
stores.
"I give him two or three years," Colby said. "If he
doesn't have things on the shelves by then, he's in very
deep trouble."
Colby said recent history has shown the feared
spread of communism never occurred and that free,
Democratic ideals have "flatly and clearly won," as
evidenced by the proliferation of democracy in many
countries.
Stagnant Cuba remains one of the few truly commu-
nist countries in Latin America, he said.
The economic decade will not be without friction,
with ethnic pressures and religious fundamentalism
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still causing strife in some countries. But Colby does
not expect "big wars" or "big problems."
He said he believes America will demand and gain
more access to markets in protectionist Far Eastern
crountries, as well as neighbors such as Mexico. West-
en Europe will revamp its economy, with new players,
such as Scandinavian countries and Austria joining in.
Africa will remain stagnant, with South African
white leaders maintaining their grip on the country
despite sanctions from around the world, Colby pre-
dicted.
China will remain a perplexing market for Western
entrepreneurs, who have not yet deciphered the tricky
political code there, Colby said.
The part of the world with some of the most serious
economic problems also is the one with some of the
biggest potential for Western prosperity - Latin
America, Colby said.
If those countries can solve their huge debt prob-
lems, their strong middle-class could be an attractive
market for American goods, he said.
Psg. 2 k
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/15: CIA-RDP99-00418R000100150028-6