N.A.T.O. to spend more on arms

Press, 14 May 1981, Page 6

N.A.T.O. to spend more on arms

NZPA-Reuter Brussels

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation Defence Ministers have made a marginally stronger commitment to increase military spending in the face of a rapid Soviet military build-up, according to alliance sources.

The Ministers agreed yesterday to extend a pledge to raise spending by a real 3 per cent a year for two more years up to 1988, the sources said. They would also invite those who can afford it to do more.

This commitment, agreed to on the first day of a twoday meeting, would marginally strengthen the previous formula on the issue. American officials said the agreement, made after a lot of debate on phrasing, was an important victory for the United States. Defence Secretary (Mr Caspar Weinberger).

The new' American administration has said recently that it wants the 3 per cent rise to be a minimum for N.A.T.O. not a goal.

The sources said several countries, led by West Germany, argued that the target was not a realistic, measure

of defence efforts. But the. reaffirmation was adopted by consensus, meaning there were no negative votes.

A senior American official said the decision was made after a grim intelligence briefing by Mr Weinberger, on what he said was a continuing and intensive Soviet military build-up, which had "a deep and profound impact” on his N.A.T.O. colleagues.

A senior Europen official said the Soviet capabilities described by Mr Weinberger with the aid of American satellite photographs were “simply frightening.” “My main worry is that the size of the Soviet military industrial establishment is so huge that I do not know how the Kremlin could wind it down if it wanted to,” he said.

The Soviet Union had created a monster it had to keep on feeding, he went on, saying it had 50,000 tanks and was producing 3000 more a year.

An American official said the report asserted there had been a 34 per cent rise in the floor area of Soviet arms factories since 1970 and that Moscow, had built more than

1000 combat aircraft a year for the last eight years. Among other subjects discussed yesterday was how European allies could support American efforts to defend Western interests in the Gulf.

A report on the “growing Warsaw Pact threat” by the chairman of the military committee said N.A.T.O. planners must increasingly take into account the ability of the Communist forces to wage a “blitz” warfare.

It said Warsaw Pact armies comprised many brigade-sized units capable of independent and rapid operations, protected by an improved air defence umbrella, and supported by an ever increasing number of helicopter gunships.

The chairman, Admiral Robert Falls (Canada) said the West should give priority to increasing its air defence and modernising some of its airfields.

But at the end of the day. the 13 Western defence chiefs were still debating how much to spend on new infrastructure,! including airfields and ports, over the next five years.-