Soviet Arms Plan ‘Good Sign,’ Shultz Says

Secretary of State George P. Shultz, in the Reagan Administration’s most favorable assessment of a Soviet proposal in years, Wednesday called Mikhail S. Gorbachev’s latest arms control plan “an advance . . . a good sign . . . good-sounding words.”

Answering questions from the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Shultz said that President Reagan and his advisers have not yet decided on a formal response to the Soviet leader’s Jan. 15 proposal for the eventual elimination of all nuclear weapons.

But, after years of abstract discussion on how to end the threat of nuclear arms, Shultz said, it is time for the U.S. government to begin a systematic study of the security implications of a post-nuclear world in which riflemen, tanks, high-explosive bombs and other conventional arms would become the ultimate weapons.

“Before we get to anywhere near that end point . . . I think we have to look very carefully at what the conditions will have to be to make a non-nuclear world a safe and stable world,” he said.

All Aspects Covered

Shultz answered questions from the committee for three hours in a hearing that ranged across all aspects of foreign policy. The session was intended to give Shultz an opportunity to justify the State Department’s $22.6-billion budget, reflecting an increase of more than $2 billion over the current fiscal year--one of the few boosts reflected in Reagan’s new spending program.

“The President has called on many occasions for the complete elimination of nuclear weapons, so he welcomes the apparent agreement of Mr. Gorbachev with that, and Mr. Gorbachev has put it in somewhat more operational form so it’s an advance,” Shultz said.

He added: “There is a recognition (by Gorbachev) of the importance of verification and an acknowledgment that in the end, on-site verification is going to be necessary if the things that are being talked about are going to come to pass. That is a good sign. What concretely lies behind those words, that are good-sounding words, remains to be seen.”

Shultz made it clear that the Administration does not intend to accept Gorbachev’s plan as is, however. He said it does not respond adequately to the latest U.S. proposals in the long-range nuclear weapons control talks and contains “nothing new” on space defense weapons, the so-called “Star Wars” proposal that Moscow wants to prohibit.

But he said the plan does contain “some interesting thoughts” about the ultimate elimination of intermediate-range nuclear weapons.

Committee members warned Shultz that the State Department would find it very difficult to convince Congress of the merits of its increased budget, which includes a $1.5-billion increase in foreign aid, to $16.1 billion.

“The chances of getting this kind of increase in this climate are slim and none,” predicted Chairman Dante B. Fascell (D-Fla.).

Israel Heads List

Almost 60% of the $12.3 billion budgeted for foreign aid programs in specific countries goes to just seven nations: Israel ($3 billion), Egypt ($2.3 billion) and five countries where the United States maintains military bases, Spain ($415 million), Portugal ($224 million), the Philippines ($233.6 million), Greece ($501.7 million) and Turkey ($975 million).

Some of the most interesting foreign aid issues were not included in the budget. No money was requested for aid to the anti-Marxist rebels in Nicaragua or Angola, no funds were proposed to assist peace efforts in Northern Ireland, and the budget for the Philippines was virtually unchanged from this year, despite Reagan’s promise of a “substantial increase” if the country’s elections Friday are free and fair.

Shultz said that the Administration will submit a request later this month for aid to the contras fighting Nicaragua’s leftist government and added that he personally supports aid to Jonas Savimbi’s anti-government rebels in Angola. But he did not cite a figure for either country.