Soviet Who Fled Ship Subpoenaed : Senate Aides Use a Ruse to Deliver Papers to Captain

Employing a ruse when negotiations failed, U.S. Senate representatives Friday subpoenaed a ship-jumping Soviet sailor to appear before Congress next week, escalating a controversy that has brought on protests, lawsuits and criticism of how the State Department handled the case.

The Senate representatives, Terrance Wear and David Sullivan, announced the delivery of the subpoena atop a levee along the Mississippi River, saying that copies of the document were slipped into cartons of cigarettes given to the ship’s captain after negotiations to bring sailor Miroslav Medvid ashore failed.

“It’s a Trojan horse kind of play,” said Wear, a lawyer for the Senate Agriculture Committee, of the gift cigarette cartons.

Expected to Appear Tuesday

Wear said Miroslav, who jumped ship two weeks ago and was returned to the Soviet freighter Marshal Konev that night, is expected to appear before the Senate Agriculture Committee Tuesday. He said that if Miroslav did not appear, the Senate sergeant-at-arms could employ U.S. marshals to enforce the subpoena. But he added that the Senate was not empowered to use force to bring Miroslav off the ship.

And, in Washington Friday night, it was still unclear whether U.S. Customs would cooperate in keeping the freighter from embarking for the Soviet Union. Dennis Murphy, a public affairs director for Customs, said that a joint agency working group was in session and considering the Medvid issue at the White House.

“The White House has assumed all responsibility, so I’m deferring to them,” Murphy said.

Ship Set to Leave Today

The ship is scheduled to finish loading corn today, and under normal circumstances would then prepare for the 50-mile-long trip down the Mississippi to the Gulf of Mexico.

Sullivan, an aide to Sen. Jesse Helms (R-N.C.), told reporters in Louisiana that Soviet diplomats had hinted at retaliation if the ship is prevented from leaving.

“It was made very clear to us today that the Soviets were threatening to retaliate against American ships in Soviet waters,” he said.

He quoted Yevgeny Vtyurin, second secretary and vice-consul at the Soviet embassy, as saying: “You know American ships are in Soviet waters.” Sullivan said Vtyurin added that he hoped the ships “would abide by Soviet regulations. But it was very clear to us it was a threat.”

The serving of the subpoena, signed by Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Helms, was the latest in a long chain of events and name calling that has taken place since Miroslav took the 40-foot plunge into the Mississippi River on Oct. 24.

Among them are:

--Criticism of the Border Patrol by the State Department for returning Medvid to the ship too quickly, despite some doubt as to whether the sailor wanted to defect.

--Three lawsuits seeking the release of Medvid, none of which has yet been successful.

--Demonstrations by Ukrainian activists, including the hiring of a boat that has circled the freighter for the last two days. The boat, renamed the “Freedom Warrior,” carried banners calling for the release of the sailor, who told U.S. officials in a later interview that he wished to return to the Soviet Union.

The State Department, after initially being critical of the Border Patrol, itself came under fire from Congress, whose members disagreed with the contention that Medvid had been given every opportunity to defect.

There were strong indications that the Administration favored letting Medvid’s ship leave U.S. waters.

Reagan Seen as Upset

Several members of Congress who met with President Reagan at the White House earlier Friday said he was upset about the way Medvid’s case had been handled initially, when the sailor was twice returned to his ship.

However, White House spokesman Larry Speakes said afterward that the President “did not insist on Medvid being questioned again” and that the Administration still considered the case closed.

“As far as the executive branch is concerned, we have exercised our responsibilities,” Speakes said. He added that “courtesies” were being extended to the Senate aides who needed transportation and other assistance in trying to serve the subpoena.

In a similar vein, the State Department released a report by an Air Force psychiatrist who said that interviews with Medvid had showed that he genuinely wanted to go home and that he was “clearly competent” to make such a decision.

And Customs Service officials--who earlier said that they had no choice but to detain the Soviet ship until the Senate subpoena had been complied with--began referring calls to the White House.

High Court Rejects Request

The judicial branch also was demonstrating an unwillingness to prevent the ship’s departure. The Supreme Court turned down without comment a request by the Ukrainian-American Bar Assn. to keep Medvid in the United States until the association could pursue his case in federal court.

Two other federal courts previously had rejected efforts to detain the ship.

Rep. William S. Broomfield of Michigan, the senior Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said that Reagan was “very troubled by the way this thing has been handled from the beginning and that he’s asked (Atty. Gen.) Ed Meese for a complete investigation.”

Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole (R-Kan.) said that the President “resented the characterization (that) ‘well, maybe we just threw this guy to the wolves because we’re getting ready’ ” for talks with Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev in Geneva later this month.

But Sen. Richard G. Lugar (R-Ind.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said that he did not sense any change in the Administration position that the case was closed.

‘Glitter and Gusto’

The Air Force psychiatrist, whose name was removed from his report, said it was likely that Medvid originally fled his ship and sought asylum for “the glitter and the gusto . . . rather than for any deep-rooted political or moral beliefs.”

The psychiatrist, who conducted lengthy interviews with Medvid and a Soviet doctor, described the young man as a “rather immature 25-year-old.”

The psychiatrist said Medvid changed his mind after being returned by U.S. agents to his ship, where he slashed his left wrist during a bout of depression, was given a painkiller and tranquilizers and was probably enticed, threatened and coached by Soviet officials.

The psychiatrist “hypothesized” that Medvid was “confronted with several issues, including his parents’ lives and welfare, the importance of home and country, with much emphasis on ‘Mama and Papa.’ It is likely that he then became rather guilty at having jeopardized his parents’ safety.”

The serving of the subpoena began Thursday when the two Senate representatives flew to New Orleans and then drove to the town of Reserve. The ship’s captain, who has not been identified, told them he could not carry out negotiations until a Soviet diplomat arrived Friday from Washington.

Not Allowed on Ship

The diplomat, Vtyurin, arrived in Reserve early Friday afternoon, followed closely by Wear and Sullivan. But the Americans were not allowed on the ship, and the negotiations took place nearby at the main offices of the grain elevator company.

After 2 1/2 hours of talks, Wear and Sullivan said that the Soviets refused to let them see or talk with Medvid, although they said they were assured that the sailor was aboard and in good health. They said the Soviets contended that their dealings on the Medvid case had to go through the State Department, and they refused to accept the subpoena, which was read to them at the meeting.

Wear said that under American law, making known the demand that Medvid appear before the Senate committee was sufficient, but the cigarette ruse was designed to make certain the Soviets complied with the order.

“No matter how you slice it, the subpoena was effectively served,” said Wear. “Since the subpoena is now out, the ship cannot be cleared to leave the port.”

Wear also said that the upcoming Soviet-American summit was mentioned only in passing during the 2 1/2 hours of talks.

Scene Like a Picnic

Throughout the day, the scene around the ship was more like a picnic than a potential international incident, with local residents sitting atop the levee overlooking the ship, watching as officials came and went.

Ukrainian-Americans carried placards calling for Medvid’s freedom, while mothers worked to keep their children in tow. Soviet sailors aboard the Marshal Konev leaned over the bow to watch the “Freedom Warrior.”

But as dusk settled over the Mississippi Delta, the two Senate representatives finally issued the statement that Medvid was not going with them, but was expected in Washington on Tuesday, the date of the hearing.

Wear said the captain smiled when he handed him the cigarettes.

“We have accomplished the mission we set out to do,” said Sullivan.