U.S. PRESSURE ON SANDINISTAS IS WORKING, CONGRESSMEN TOLD

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000201090032-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 24, 2012
• Sequence Number: 32
• Publication Date: August 4, 1983
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

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41P FLEE MIAMI HERALD
4 August 1983
i
U.S. ressure on Sandinistas s
told.-,
worklngcongressmen
When Rep. Ed Zschau (R., Calif.) Cuban news agency report Tuesday
in order
l
s
cking the rebe
States is ba et freighter Alexander Ulyanov and
to force democracy on Nicaragua, asked it to identify itself, list its
the State Department official did
cargo and give its destination just
not demur.
"We would like to see a govern- before it anchored off the Nicara-
ment integrating democratic ele- guan port of Corinto Saturday.
ments," be-said, adding that Wash-, The Associated Press quoted Pen
leased if the tagon sources assaying that- the
ld be
"
p
wou
gton
in Sandinista .government were to be
motivated in order to go in the di-
rection that the Salvadorans. are
trying to go
When Rep. Stephen Solari (D.,
N.Y.) asked how effective the CIA-
backed rebels had been in interdict.
ing Sandinista arms shipments to El
Salvador, Sanchez answered that
"interdiction efforts have resulted
in~,,a diminution -of the flow of
arms ?
Abrams, the State Department's
human rights specialist, suggested
that the guerrillas' role would di-
minish if Nicaragua turned to de-
mocracy and stopped violating the
human rights of its people.
Abrams' comment prompted a
sharp exchange with Rep. Michael
Barnes (D. Md.), an administration
ship in the first Abrams
known U.S. approach to vessels al-
legedly carrying weapons to the
Sandinistas.
The McCormick is on maneuvers
off Nicaragua in what U.S. officials
say is part of a campaign to pres-
sure the Sandinistas to stop-
export-ing their revolution abroad and
adopt democratic policies at home.
Langhorne Motley, assistant sec-
retary of state for inter-American
affairs, suggested at a congressional
hearing that the pressures - in-
cluding those exerted by CIA-
backed Nicaraguan guerrillas -
have begun to work.
Motley and two other top admin-
istration officials indicated to a joint
session of two House Foreign Af-
fairs subcommittees that the rebels'
activities had forced Sandinista
leaders to worry more about their
internal problems than about "de-
stabilizing" their neighbors.
"They have had to look inward,"
said Motley, who was accompanied
by Nestor Sanchez, deputy assistant
secretary of defense for inter-
American affairs, and assistant sec-
retary of state for human rights El-
liott Abrams.
The statements by Motley, San-
chez and Abrams were unusually
frank - apparently part of an ef-
fort to mend the damage caused by
the House vote last week to cut off
CIA aid to the rebels.
The Navy ad-
mitted, 'mean-
while, that the
missile frigate
USS McCor-
mick had hailed
a Nicaraguan-
bound Soviet
ceeded in forc-
ing the Sandi-
nista govern-
ment to trim its
revolutionary
sails.
By ALFONSO CHARDY
Herald Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON - Reagan Ad-
ministration officials suggested to
congressmen Wednesday that U.S.
pressures on Nicaragua have suc-
critic, who asked, "Did you in fact
say that the pressure the United
States is bringing against Nicaragua
is part of our human-rights policy?"
"What I said was," said Abrams,
"we are pressuring Nicaragua, just
like we are pressuring the other
countries in the area, to move in the
direction of democracy."
-`Well," said Barnes, "we haven't
hired 10,000 or 12,000 guerrillas to
invade Chile."
At the Pentagon, Navy Cmdr.
Fred Leeder confirmed that the Mc-
Cortnick "questioned a Soviet ship
Saturday in international waters
prior to the Soviet cargo ship enter-
ing a Nicaraguan port. It was never
impeded at all. It was merely ques-
tioned by radio. "
Leeder's version coincided with a l
McCormick's request for the 'Ulya-
nov's identification and destination
was not unusual, but that the query
about its cargo was "not normal."
Although the Ulyanov's skipper
was not obligated to reply to the
question about his load, sources said
the Soviet captain told the Ameri-
cans that it had general cargo
.aboard.
This report was supplemented by
Herald wire services.- .
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/01/24: CIA-RDP90-00965R000201090032-8