Best Chance for Arms Pact--Wright : War Is ‘Common Enemy,’ Visiting Speaker Tells Soviets

Speaker of the House Jim Wright, winding up a weeklong visit to the Soviet Union, said Saturday that he will advise President Reagan that the United States has its best chance in 50 years to make an acceptable agreement with the Kremlin to reduce nuclear arms.

Wright (D-Tex.), who headed a delegation of 20 members of the House of Representatives, made the statement at a news conference.

Later, in a rare address on Soviet television, he declared that the United States and the Soviet Union are each spending nearly $300 billion a year for military purposes.

“What waste that is for both of us when human wants go unmet in both our countries,” he said. “We do have a common enemy--and the enemy is war itself.”

Wright gave highly favorable appraisals of Soviet leader Mikhail S. Gorbachev and Yegor K. Ligachev, considered the second most powerful member of the ruling Politburo, both of whom met with the congressional delegation last week.

“We believe they have been frank and honest and open with us,” he told reporters. “We think this moment in history presents the best opportunity we have had in the past 50 years to produce an agreement, mutual and verifiable, on reduction of arms . . . .”

‘An Acceptable Number’

Wright said later that he got “a feeling” after talks with Gorbachev that an agreement could be reached to remove medium-range nuclear missiles from Europe and reduce shorter-range missiles (those with a range of 350 to 1,000 miles) to “an acceptable number” deployed in Europe by the Soviets and the United States.

Rep. Dick Cheney of Wyoming, chairman of the Republican Policy Committee in the House and ranking GOP member of the delegation, also said prospects are bright for agreement on removing medium-range missiles from Europe.

“We’re close to agreement . . . and should be able to resolve the differences in the next few months,” Cheney said.

Wright and Cheney both said that they pressed hard on human rights issues during their private discussions with Soviet leaders.

“We suggested, for example, that the Soviet Union conduct a re-examination of people refused (an exit visa) for having knowledge of secrets,” Wright said.

Many refuseniks have been barred from emigrating on grounds that they were exposed to state secrets as long as 30 years ago. Wright said that Gorbachev has, in the past, suggested that the visa barrier should not apply for more than five or 10 years after exposure to secret information.

Rep. Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) said Soviet refusal to give exit visas to Soviet spouses of Americans is undermining efforts to achieve accords in other areas.