Should Noriega Go? Reagan Answers Yes

President Reagan today indicated he believes Panamanian Gen. Manuel Antonio Noriega must go, while Secretary of State George P. Shultz said economic sanctions against Noriega’s government were being “considered carefully.”

Reagan, during an unscheduled meeting with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher at the conclusion of the NATO summit, was asked during a picture-taking session if he thought Noriega should relinquish power.

“Yes,” the President responded. He did not elaborate.

During a subsequent photo session with Belgian Prime Minister Wilfried Martens, Reagan was asked if the United States was ready to seize Panamanian assets in American banks.

“I can’t give you an answer yet,” he replied. “We still have a lot of talking to do.”

Reagan last Friday said he had no plans to intervene militarily in Panama and said he thought the American options were limited in the area.

‘Noriega Is Bad News’

At a news conference today in Brussels following the conclusion of the NATO summit, Shultz told reporters, “Noriega is bad news for Panama, he’s bad news for the region.”

He said there were a “variety of things” the United States could do, including restricting the flow of money into the Panamanian treasury. “That is being considered carefully,” he said. “We want to do it properly, we want to do it right, we want to do it effectively.”

In Panama, meanwhile, a protest strike against Noriega weakened today in its fourth and possibly last day.

Panamanian-owned banks opened for business--reportedly under heavy pressure from the government--despite what economists and diplomats said was “an almost crippling” shortage of cash because of a run on the banks by depositors worried about the country’s political crisis.