Ethics, Soviets Say, Keep Them Quiet on Reagan’s Condition

A Soviet Foreign Ministry spokesman today declined to say whether President Reagan’s health could affect U.S.-Soviet relations, saying it was unethical to speculate about a leader’s ailments.

Asked for the official Soviet reaction to Reagan’s cancer surgery at a briefing to mark the 40th anniversary of the 1945 Potsdam conference, Vladimir B. Lomeiko replied, “It is not in accordance with our traditions to make any kind of speculation with regard to the illness of one political leader.”

“We do not think it is justified in terms of ethics to make any kind of speculation around the bed of a sick person,” Lomeiko said.

He said that he personally wished Reagan good health but that questions on the topic fell outside the scope of the briefing.

Soviet officials almost never comment on the health of their leaders. Even when they do, their comments may not reflect the gravity of the illness. A senior official told foreigners a few days before the death of Yuri V. Andropov in February, 1984, that the leader was suffering from a cold. Andropov had been out of public view for almost six months and had been suffering from several illnesses.