Castro tells Carter: Don’t flex military muscle over troops

Press, 2 October 1979, Page 9

Castro tells Carter: Don’t flex military muscle over troops

KZPA Miami i The Cuban President i Dr 1 Fidel Castro) said yesterday 1 that the dispute with the ; United States over Soviet troops in Cuba is a comedy 1 that could turn into a crisis if Pre-ident Carter tries to flex United States military 1 might around his Caribbean nation 1 Dr Castro also said he would not object to a meet- ' ins with Mr Carter to resolve the dispute, but said he was not calling for such ' a conference. Mr Carter plans a nat- i ionally broadcast address on the Soviet troops issue 1 today at 1 p.m. There were signs in Wash- i ington vesterday of last-min-ute efforts to resolve the conflict as the deadline for Mr Carter’s television address approached. The Soviet Ambassador in Washington (Mr Anatoly , Dobrynin) conferred priva- , tely at a surprise meeting j with the American Secretary of State (Mr Cyrus Vance) resuming the direct negotia- > t ons which broke off a few days ago after apparently , failing to break the deadlock. Interviewed in Havana for CBS-TVs "60 minutes" news i programme. Mr Castro said Soviet troops were part of a m ’’tary instruction centre that the United States had i known about for 17 years. He made the same assertion last week. The Carter Administration

maintains that the Soviet i troops are part of a combat ’ brigade of 2000 to 3000 sol- ’ diers, 40 tanks, artillery, and < armoured personnel carriers. 1 “There has been no i change in the nature or function of the Soviet mili- I tary personnel in Cuba in ' the last 17 years,” Dr Cas- : tro told the interviewer I through an interpreter. Dr Castro said the brigade 1 had been stationed in Cuba : since 1962 with the full , knowledge of previous 1 American Presidents. It had to be known by Mr Carter. Dr Castro said. He said he would not call Mr Carter a liar, but would describe him as dishonest for creating an artificial crisis. However, he added, if President Carter today said there had been a change in the nature of function of Soviet military personnel since 1962, “it will be telling a great lie to the U.S. public opinion and the world opinion.” Dr Castro was asked about reports that Mr Carter might decide to increase United States military pres ence in areas near Cuba such as Puerto Rico, Key West, Florida, and the United States Navy base in Cuba at Guantanamo. “What Mr Carter should not do is create a crisis w'ithout a legal basis, without a moral basis,” he said. “That w'ill mean to move into conflict, into crisis. . . We will not be intimidated." Concerning a meeting with

s Mr Carter. Dr Castro said: “1 will not propose it. If he |- would propose it, I have no f objections to having a con- n tact with President Carter or n anyone he appoints.” a Dr Castro said no com- t parison could be made be- e tween the present situation and the 1962 missile crisis e because in 1962 there was r “a real objective danger of a nuclear conflict during the f Soviet-U.S. face-off over t presence of missiles on the c island." t The October (1962) crisis j was a real crisis he said. ‘ “This is an invented crisis.’. The October crisis could ‘ have been "a tragedy. This . ‘ is a comedy.” "Asked if he would cate- c gorically deny that the So-) ( viet troops were on a com- j bat mission, Dr Castro an-y swered by saying that since J 1962, the troops had been on , a training mission only. Several American Con- ] gressional leaders have said ( they think the confrontation has been blown out of pro- ■ portion to the real threat posed by so small a combat unit — jeopardising chances for Senate passage of the; Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (S.A.L.T. II). Senator Jacob Javits, a high-ranking Republican on * the Senate Foreign Relations • Committee, urged Mr Carter to put the conflict in calmer perspective in his address. L "I think the situation has been over-reacted to and II think the situation should be y ; reduced,” Senator Javits J said. _____________ r