Soviets Blast U.S. Policy on South Africa

In its harshest attack on U.S. policy toward South Africa, the Soviet Union today accused President Reagan of making a “mockery of the tragic position of the African majority.”

An official government statement, read at a news conference for foreign and Soviet reporters, also called for an immediate end to the white minority government’s policy of racial segregation in South Africa.

The statement called apartheid “an open crime against humanity, a flagrant mockery of human rights,” and said the government of President Pieter W. Botha could not maintain it without U.S. support.

Moscow accused Washington of hypocrisy in arbitrarily applying sanctions against nations with which it disagreed, while “not moving a finger” against the Pretoria regime.

The government statement condemned remarks made by Reagan earlier this week that were later clarified by the White House. Reagan said segregation had been eliminated in the nation, but the White House clarified that to mean only in certain areas.

“The statement by the U.S. President to the effect that segregation has been eliminated in the republic of South Africa and (that) the whole question allegedly boils down to the desirability of perfecting democracy in that country is an outright mockery of the tragic position of the African majority,” it said.