LATIN AID BOOST TO BE SOUGHT

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000100270023-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 28, 2011
• Sequence Number: 23
• Publication Date: September 8, 1985
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

STAT
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/12/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000100270023-0
ARTICLE A P ED
ON PAGE
WASHINGTON POST
8 September 1985
Latin Aid Boost to Be Sought
State Dept. Paper Evaluates Situation in Nicaragua, El Salvador
By Charles R. Babcock
Washingtm Mw Std(( Writer
A secret briefing paper prepared.
for a meeting of U.S. ambassadors
in Panama this week says that U.S.-
backed forces in Nicaragua and El
Salvador do not appear near victory
and that the Reagan administration
will seek additional aid for the re-
gion.
The paper said the administra-
tion will seek a supplemental appro-
priation from Congress to bring the
aid "to the levels recommended" by
the Kissinger commission on Cen-
tral America. A congressional
source said that, amounts to more
than $480 million.
Entitled "The View From Wash-
ington," the Sept. 4 draft paper also
expresses administration doubts
about peace negotiations in Central
America and suggests that in his
talks there, Assistant Secretary of
State Elliott Abrams make these
points:
^ The dialogue between the gov-
ernment of El Salvador President
Jose Napoleon Duarte and rebel
forces "has been useful. We now
need to consider whether and how
to foster it. It does not appear that
the war can be won by either side
on the ground."
^ "Nicaragua will remain our major
problem and the chances for a
breakthrough there are limited
.... The armed Nicaragua resis-
tance is a potent force but still a
long way from success. Public sup-
port is growing but is still tenuous.
They must understand the absolute
necessity of fighting a 'clean' war."
^ The United States prefers to
continue the Contadora peace pro-
cess-sponsored by Mexico, Col-
ombia, Venezuela and Panama-but
"collapse would be better than a bad
agreement." The role and influence
of a "support group" composed of
Argentina, Brazil, Peru and Uru-
guay "is yet'to be determined. ft
may breathe new life into the pro-
cess.
We are afraid that it will seek to
pressure the U.S. and friends to
accept an agreement rather than a
good agreement .... We nee(i to :
develop an active diplomacy now to
head off efforts at Latin solidarity
aimed against the U.S. and our al=
lies, whether they are sponsored by
the support group, the Cubans or
the Nicaraguans. We need to find' a
way to turn pressure they bring to
bear on us or our friends to our ad-
vantage."
^ "We intend to seek a FY 1986
supplemental appropriation to in-
crease assistance to the levels rec-
ommended by the Kissinger com-
mission report. Congressional sup-
port is not assured." A congression-
al source said such an increase
would mean $300 million in addi-
tional economic aid for the region as
well as $182 million more in mili-
tary aid. Such a request would be
very controversial, the source
added.
Another congressional source
said, "Someone's feeding at the silly
trough down there" if they think
such an amount would be approved
by Congress.
The paper also said, -rhe eco-
nomic and related crises in South
America and the Caribbean are se-
rious and, given limited U.S. re-
sources, difficult to address. We are
working on them on a case-by-case
basis, seeking to be catalysts for
change, not agents of change."
It emphasized that the region's
governments "must understand,
with no ambiguity, that the U.S. is
dedicated to the process of democ-
racy and that the process involves
more than just periodic elections.
Respect for human rights and a
functioning judiciary are essential."
A State Department spokesman
sae the draft briefing paper was
intended to provoke internal discus-
sion" but "indicates-how much our
private po icy papers compare o
what we say publicly."
ambassadors from Nicara-
ua, Hon uras, Sal
va or, ua-
tema a, Costa Rica, Panania__a7n,
Belize are sch e u e to in Abrams
and representatives oFfi-e-Na-t-io-n-al
Security Council, the entra nter-
i ence Na-ency and the e ense
Department at the session that be-
gins toda .
Topics will include the Reagan
administration's plan for imple-
menting $27 million in nonmilitary
aid approved by Congress for coun-
terrevolutionaries, called contras,
fighting the government of Nicara-
gua, the administration's proposal
for a regional counterterrorism pro-
gram and a "current regional threat
briefing" by Gen. John R. Gavin,
head of the U.S. Southern Com-
mand.
Government officials in Honduras
announced last month that they
would oppose attempts to filter new
aid to the contras through the U.S.
embassy in Tegucigalpa. The brief-
ing paper said, "We have to reas-
sure our allies of our commitment
to respect their domestic political
constraints and must work closely
with them regarding the details of
the distribution of this assistance.
Honduran support for the Ni-
caraguan resistance is critical to
our efforts."
On other topics, the briefing pa-
per said, "The prospects for addi-
tional transitions to democracy in
the short-term are virtually nonex-
istent."
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/12/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000100270023-0