U.S. INTRIGUED BUT UNCERTAIN ON A BULGARIAN TIE TO POPE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00552R000505140023-3
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 3, 2011
• Sequence Number: 23
• Publication Date: December 29, 1982
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Approved For Release 2011/05/03: CIA-RDP90-00552R000505140023-3
ARTICLE
O PAGE
NEW YORK TIMES
29 DECEMBER 1982
U.S. Intrigued but Uncertain
On a Bulgarian Tie to Pope
By BERNARD GWERTZMAN
SpedaltoTAaltawYakT1mu '
WASHINGTON, Dec. 28 - United - "The data that we do have at the moo-
States intelligence officials remain in. ment is not complete, and not every-
trigued but unconvinced by allegations thing has been confirmed," he said.
in Italy that Bulgaria instigated the at- "We will give a political assessment
tempted assassination of Pope John when all the necessary data has been
Paul II, Administration officials said collected and, most of all, confirmed."
today. He noted that the charges of Bulgar-
Because of the explosive implications ian and, by implication, Soviet involve-
for East-West relations if a Bulgarian ment were "very serious." If the alle-
connection is proved, the inability of gations are proved, he said, Italy will
American Intelligence agencies to draw bring the information to the attention of
any firm conclusions from the available the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
evidence has persuaded the State De- But when asked if there might be a
partment that the best policy for the link between the shooting of the Pope
United States is to say little and wait for
Italy to complete its investigation, the
officials said.
Officials familiar with the Central In-
telligence Agency's work in the case
said there was considerable evidence
linking Bulgaria to espionage and ter-
rorist activity in Italy and elsewhere.
But the information available to the
United States, much of it provided by
the Italians, has failed to convince
American officials that Bulgarian
agents hired Mehmet All Agca, a Turk,
to shoot the Pope on May 13, 1961.
Italian Leaders Divided
One of the problems for the Adminis-
tration is that Italian leaders are
divided on the case.- The Socialist
Party, part of the coalition Govern-
ment, has accused the Bulgarians and,
by implication, the Soviet Union of insti-
gating the plot against the Pope as well
as in gunrunning, drug smuggling and
cooperation with Italian Red Brigades
terrorists.
But the dominant Christian Demo-
crats have been more restrained and
have argued that until the investigating
magistrate, Ilario Martella, completes
his inquiry, no conclusions should be
drawn in public about international in-
volvement. As a result, a feud has
erupted between the two parties.
In a debate in Parliament last week,
Defense Minister Lelio Lagorio, a So-
cWist, was much more categoric in ac-
casing the Bulgarians and the Russians
of involvement than were Christian
Democratic ministers.
When Secretary of State George P.
Shultz held talks in Rome on Dec. 13
with the Pope and Italian officials, the
investigation was a major subject. -
Foreign Minister's Stand
Foreign Minister Emilio-Combo, a
Christian Democrat; said at a joint
press conference with Mr. Shultz that
"we are following with great concern
the evolution of this situation."
sumption would be made around the
world that the Bulgarians would not
have acted without Soviet collusion.
But officials said that Mr. Shultz
wanted to be certain of the evidence be-
fore the United States spoke out to avoid
the impression that the evidence was
being fabricated in Washington.
Officials here said there had been no
decisions on what action NATO will
take if, in fact, a Bulgarian connection
is proved. One senior official said today
that he doubted that there would be
much sentiment for breaking off negoti-
ations with the Soviet Union on such
issues as arms control.
Issue of Bulgarian's Alibi
ROME, Dec. 28 (AP) - The prosecu-
t investigating the shooting of Pope
John Paul II will question several wit-
nesses who defense attorneys say sup-
port the alibi of a Bulgarian charged in
the attack, the Italian news agency
ANSA said.
and the Soviet Government, Mr. Colom-1 It quoted a lawyer for the Bulgarian,
bo, said, "I don't feel that you can draw Sergei Ivanov Antonov, as saying that
the conclusions in the direction you the state prosecutor, riario Martella,
seem to be going." had agreed to talk to the witnesses in
is well to speculate on this and I would
only echo what Foreign Minister Co-
lombo has just said, that it is a serious
investigation with important implica-
-tions, and we'll await the developments
of the investigation."
Interior Minister Virginio Rogoni, a
-Christian Democrat, said in an inter-
view in Le Monde last week that the
new developments came from revela-
tions by Mr. Agca, who originally said
be committed the crime by himself. He
was sentenced to life imprisonment.
"There may be various reasons for
that change of attitude by Agca," Mr.
Rogoni said. "It is not impossible that
Mr. Antonov, director of the Bulgar.
ian state airlines in Rome, was arrested
Nov. 25 and charged with complicity in
the attack on the Pope.
Mr. Martella has never publicly said
what role Mr. Antonov purportedly
played in the assassination attempt.
Italian newspapers have reported that
Mr. Agca told investigators that Mr.
he hopes to be able to obtain certain ad I
vantages allowed by the law." In Italy,
a convicted terrorist's sentence can be
cut in half if he confesses fully.
A senior Administration official said
the American intelligence
es
'
agenci
position was to "wait and see."
"The evidence from the various Ital-
ian authorities is not wholly convinc-
ing," he said. "The evidence of which
we are ayare is not wholly convincing.
This is not to say that the possibility of a
Bulgarian connection is ruled out, but
we need more information before we
can come to afirm t."
One official said that there was strong
evidence to link the Bulgarians to espio-
nage activity in Italy and to support for
Red Brigades and Palestinian terrorist
groups. He said the Italians had infor-
mation that after Brig. Gen. James L.
Dozier was kidnapped last December,
the Bulgarians gave the Red Brigades
questions to pose to him.
This explains, the official said, why
radio transmissions from the Bulgarian
.Embassy increased while General Do-
zier was being held.
State Department officials said solid
Information linking the Bulgarians to
the shooting would be a propaganda
windfall for the West because the as-
Antonov's apartment was used to plan
the attack and that he was in St. Peter's
Square along with two runidentitied
Turks to help Mr. Agca escape after
shooting the Pope.
Giuseppe Consolo, one of Mr. Anto-
nov's two Italian lawyers, has said be
could prove that his 35-year-old client
was in his Rome office and not in St.
Peter's Square on the day of the attack
and that he had several witnesses to
support the alibi.
Bulgaria Publishes Report
VIENNA, Dec. 28 (AP) - Bulgaria's
official press agency has published a 72-
page document outlining Western, re-
ports of allegations that Bulgarians
were implicated in the shooting of
John Paul II, the agency said today.
Bulgar-
ian Telegraph Agency wants to make
the public familiar with the stages of
the anti-Bulgarian and antisoclalist
campaign in greater details," it said.
It said the report was called "Anat-
omy of a Slander" and was on We at
newsstands in Bulgaria.
Approved For Release 2011/05/03: CIA-RDP90-00552R000505140023-3