Arms sales to Iran put U.S. in tricky position

Press, 3 August 1976, Page 8

Arms sales to Iran put U.S. in tricky position

NZPA-Reuter Washington

The United States has sold so many weapons to Iran, and has so many civilian and military advisers and technicians there, that any change in United States arms policy would trigger off a major crisis in Ameri-can-Iranian relations, a U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee report charges. The report, made public by Senator Hubert Humphrey (Democrat, Minnesota), said U.S. weapons sales to Iran totalled SUSIO,OOOM since 1972. There were 24,000 American military and civilian advisers and technicians in Iran at present, and the figure couid rise to 60,000 or more by 1980 if the current rhythm was maintained, the report says. I The United States has become the main supplier of ■arms to Iran in virtually all

■ fields since May, 1972, thej report says. The arms boomj was touched off by President ’ Richard Nixon and his then principal adviser on national security. Dr Henry Kissinger, the present Secretary of State, according to the Senate report. It was at that time, Mr Humphrey said, that they gave the Shah of Iran assurances that the United States would sell his country virtually any conventional weapons it wanted. Mr Humphrey added that in the light of the tremendous arms build-up, so far without any policy direction, the United States could not abandon, substantially diminisu, or even redirect, its arms programmes to Iran without precipitating a major crisis in relations.” Mr Humphrey complained I that there was little evidence that the President and the Secretary of State had;

■ recognised the far-reaching implications of the United [States-lranian military relationship. United Press International reported that the United States sales to Iran since Mr Nixon's decision in 1972 had included: 80 ultra-modern Fl 4 jet fighters; 37 Hawk anti-aircraft batteries with 1800 missiles; six destroyers more sophisticated than those being built for the U.S. Navy. The report said the Pentagon could not keep track of these sales and the former Defence Secretary, Mr James Schlesinger, had finally appointed a secret agent in 1973 to find out what was going on. But Mr Schlesinger's move had backfired, the report ■said, when Mr Richard Kollock, his agent, had eventually become an Iranian Government adviser on U.S. weaponry.