U.S. Flights To Continue

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29983, 19 November 1962, Page 11

U.S. Flights To Continue

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) MIAMI, November 18. Cuban military authorities have ordered the skies over Cuba cleared today of all domestic and commercial airline flights, according to a Havana Radio broadcast heard in Miami.

The broadcast gave no reason for the order, but there was immediate speculation that it could be connected with the Cuban threat to shoot down United States surveillance flying over Cuba

The United States has affirmed that aerial surveillance will continue until all the provisions of the SovietAmerican agreement on Cuba are implemented. Soviet support for the Cuban stand came in the Main Political Committee of the United Nations General Assembly yesterday where the debate on general and complete disarmament assumed heavy overtones of the crisis.

The Soviet Deputy Foreign Minister (Mr Valerian Zorin) told the 110-member committee that any government was obliged to defend the border of its territory and was within its right to take any steps to ensure that defence and to prevent any violations of those borders. Effective Immediately The Cuban resident representative, Dr. Carlos Lechuga, delivered the threat to the Secretary-General <U Thant) on Friday night and there had been suggestions here that the Russians were not wholly behind it Dr. Lechuga told the committee yesterday that the warning was effective immediately.

The United States representative, Mr Arthur Dean, rejoined that his Government would continue to take “appropriate measures.” Defence Department sources said the United States was prepared to protect jts reconnaissance flights with fighter plane escorts. The Cuban representative asserted that the American naval blockade and overflights were unilateral measures of war that violated the United Nations Charter He said the “aggressive Government of the United States” was flouting Cuban sovereignty and encouraging an atmosphere of tension United States officials at the United Nations and in Washington today were

studying new Cuban and Soviet proposals for settling the Cuban crisis.

U Thant said yesterday he had forwarded the new proposals tq United States officials. He declined, however, to disclose them, and Cuban, Soviet and United States delegation sources could not be reached for comment last night. The new proposals relate to negotiations at the United Nations which aim at carrying out the agreement of President Kennedy and the Soviet Prime Minister (Mr Khrushchev) for removal of Soviet “offensive weapons” from Cuba under United Nations supervision, and a United States pledge against invasion of Cuba. The Soviet Union has withdrawn 42 surface-to-surface missiles, which were checked out by the United States Navy, but it has not removed about 30 IL2B jet bombers Cuba has rejected any United Nations supervision. U Thant talked to reporters last night before addressing delegates to a convention of the American Association for the United Nations. President Kennedy is seeking a prompt, decisive reply from Mr Khrushchev on removal from Cuba of the bombers

The President is reported to have made clear to Moscow through diplomatic channels that for the United States, time is running out on the bomber issue and the Soviet Government should make its position known without delay Press Conference

Officials said the President had not fixed any time limit for new moves if the bombers were not taken out of Cuba But it was considered significant in official quarters that the President had set a press conference for Tuesday—his first since September 13. Officials said that Mr Kennedy, in scheduling a “live” radio-television conference, obviously expected to have some major news on Cuba for the American public.