‘Star Wars’ Necessary in Pact--Soviets : Moscow Spokesman Contradicts Comment by Chief Negotiator

Contradicting comments by the chief Soviet negotiator that a nuclear arms reduction-”Star Wars” package agreement is not necessary, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said today that the Soviet Union is willing to discuss intermediate-range missiles and other arms issues but will not sign a deal that does not include a settlement on space weapons.

The spokesman, Gennady Gerasimov, was asked repeatedly about the Soviet arms control position during his first Moscow news briefing after the Iceland summit between President Reagan and Mikhail S. Gorbachev.

There have been conflicting signals from the Soviets on whether the Kremlin would be willing to conclude a separate pact on intermediate-range missiles or whether they would insist on a link between arms reductions and “Star Wars,” the U.S. plan for a space-based defense shield.

Gorbachev said in Reykjavik on Sunday that the Kremlin views intermediate-range missiles, strategic weapons and space arms as a “package.”

But chief Soviet negotiator Viktor Karpov said in London on Tuesday that there could be a separate solution to the issue of medium-range missiles at the Geneva arms talks.

‘Matter of Dialectics’

Then, on Wednesday, Gorbachev was quoted as suggesting to Argentine President Raul Alfonsin that the arms control proposals outlined in Reykjavik constituted an indivisible package. (Story, Page 8.)

Gerasimov said the apparent confusion arose from a “matter of dialectics.”

What was discussed in Reykjavik, Gerasimov said, was a “complex of proposals, a package.”

“But at the same time, we have not canceled the Geneva negotiations and at the level of experts, talk can continue about intermediate-range missiles and strategic missiles,” he said.

Gerasimov added later, however, that the Kremlin “cannot divide this package.”

U.S. Negotiator’s Reaction

Asked whether it is correct to say that the Soviets are willing to negotiate any issue in Geneva but will not sign an agreement unless it includes a settlement to the “Star Wars” dispute, Gerasimov said: “For now, that is the case.”

Senior U.S. arms negotiator Max Kampelman said today in Bonn that if the Kremlin insists on linking cuts in medium-range missiles to curbs on “Star Wars,” it will be reneging on earlier commitments to the West.

But Kampelman also said he expects “uncertainty and ambiguity” from the Soviets “until they get their act together” and decide whether they want to link the two issues.

Kampelman made his remarks at a breakfast meeting with reporters in Bonn.

“As far as the U.S. is concerned, we would consider a decision not to go forward on INF (medium-range missiles) a significant walking-back of commitments made to us in Geneva, and to us by letter, and I believe also to the West German government by letter,” he said. “It would be a bad sign.”