HAIG CAUTIONS HILL AGAINST ENDING AID TO EL SALVADOR
Document Type:
Collection:
Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST):
CIA-RDP90-00552R000100390023-5
Release Decision:
RIPPUB
Original Classification:
K
Document Page Count:
1
Document Creation Date:
December 22, 2016
Document Release Date:
July 29, 2010
Sequence Number:
23
Case Number:
Publication Date:
March 11, 1982
Content Type:
OPEN SOURCE
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Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/29: CIA-RDP90-00552R000100390023-5
A.T -fC _:E A21'E_LIiE
By John M. Goshko
Secretary of State',Alexander M:
Haig Jr., speaking against. a back-
ground - of - mounting- controversy.
about U.S. policy in Central Amer=
.ica, told Congress yesterday_that cut-
ting off military aid would be"a fatal
blow" to the government of El Sal'..
vador in its struggle against leftist-
guerrillas.
"I think it would be' ,,a catastro-
phe," Haig said. "In practical.terms,
the guerrillas are not.about to over-
whelm the country. But ,American-
arms are a crucial factor, even more
'in political and--psychological terms
than in actual material terms."
The secretary's testimony before. a
Senate subcommittee- came on a day.
that saw a rapid-fire series. of devel-
opme_ nts continue to push the- de-
bate over El Salvador and-Nicaragua.
to the forefront of congressional and
executive branch attention- Among.
er :n s ?s rdcy and-list night were
p Twenty s"x,, prominent., officials-
of past Republicarr and Democratic
administrations emerged from a clas-
sified intelligence- 'briefing" at-the-
. State'Departent to say, they la'
been given convincing; evidence: that
the Salvadoran-,guerrillas= are ? being-
aided, supplied and guided- from out.-,,
side, by Cuba_ and Nicaragua.'How
ever, the former offcials:also;agreed?;
that the evidence is 'so' "sensitive"
that it cannot be made public with-
out causing serious damage- to- U$.
.ability to collect'. intelligence in=. t1 -
future. ~: - ... .........r.
THE WASHINGTON POST
11 March 1982
Haig; Defense Secretarjr Caspar Weinberger
W.; Weinberger and some other. sen= Uones, chairman
for administration officials refused-161 nt`Staff
reiterat
,
comment.. on. a- report yesterday: in fore the House Fo
The-Washington Post that President ttee, that the i
Reagan has approved a $19 million nd, plans or inten
program to destabilize 'the-. revolu- troops to El Salv,
tionary .'Sandinista-dominated gov its support
ernment'in Nicaragua. Instead, they civilian government- there' to- in-
took- the position, described by. Haig Erased military and economic aid.
as "consistent and longstanding.pol-. s. The administration, obviously
icy,". that the government does not - oncerned that its policy toward
comment. publicly ;on covert activ- Central America could be derailed
ities, but. they added' that their ~i- by_ persistent questions about wheth- {
lence should not be interpreted as
i
di
f
ng
or a
s hea
er the United States
confirmation of the report. ;s new Vietnam-type involvement, this
However, White House counselor week mounted a campaign to swing
Edwin Meese III told a journalism- .public opinion behind its approach.
seminar here last night that The The effort began Tuesday when
Post. report placed the administra.01
tion in a "totall untenable gnror intelligence officials gave re-
y position!' porters a detailed briefing, including
Meese said: "Here is a situation. in- the, display of blowups of aerial re-
which the security of the country is connaissance photographs, designed
seriously affected, whether the arti- to show that Nicaragua is building a?
cle be true or false. If it is true, then suable - military establishment with
very important secrets vital to our Cuhan and Soviet help. The second
natonaJ interest and vital to the site ,
brief-
cess of any such. mission have beens~age came yesterday, with the brief-
u)& aimed at enlisting the support of
s
you have
reveated. If it is fal
e, then. ,___-- -- ,- 1-- former officials and with Haig's. ap-.
snot`rejected Mexican President Jose I l,, GSg31 QSSA, J
me- XJpder heavy questioning fmni
t
t
ff
ill
'
as a
o ac
er
s o
o
Lopez Port
Republican and Democratic meall
d h
t
Th
ld
axy sai
e seer
aragaa.-
e: 9
Nicaraguan capital of Managua. He
continue discussing the idea with said the principal flaw in the Mex-
Mexican Foreign Minister Jorge.Cas ican peace initiative, which he as-
another hint that Washington wants . .... ......... r.,,.. -
.L_ ~___:1:- ~.. r ., Posed by the United States and re re-
b
y ""'~"`6-
'
fuel negotiations, Haig expressed "?" '
'lack of a requirement.that Nicaragua
l
hope that after the March 28 e
ec "Commit
itself tocease sad desist" in
hb,,,
tions fora constituent assembly, is ;nun ement w 4U its nei
g
s
rnciucea; to- lay sown rneir arms nil '.means possible to, -.bring-', :, about?`a,
_theoatvaaoran peoPie::- :~ a 'reciprocal `oblizations by those who
Copy Approved for Release 2010/07/29: CIA-RDP90-00552R000100390023-5 irst