Pakistan Reportedly Cuts Flow of U.S. Arms to Afghan Rebels

Pakistan, under heavy Soviet and U.N. pressure and with U.S. approval, has halted the flow of almost all arms provided by the United States to the Afghan resistance, according to Administration sources.

The sources cited a “significant reduction” in arms crossing the border from Pakistan into Afghanistan since mid-June and said little more than small arms and ammunition still reach the guerrillas.

The supply of U.S.-made Stinger anti-aircraft missiles and such arms as mortars has virtually stopped, they said.

The Pakistani decision came after the Reagan Administration urged Pakistan to cooperate with U.N. attempts to monitor implementation of accords signed April 14 in Geneva by the Soviet Union, the United States, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

‘Trying to Be Cooperative’

“The Pakistanis are trying to be cooperative with” the U.N. Good Offices Mission in Afghanistan and Pakistan, a U.S. official said. “We told them they have a commitment to meet.”

The decision also came after Soviet officials complained bitterly about Pakistani and U.S. violations of the accords and threatened to slow withdrawal of their 100,000 to 115,000 troops from Afghanistan. As of late June, 23,000 had left, according to Soviet officials.

Some U.S. officials expressed concern that the Soviets might not meet their interim goal of a 50% reduction by Aug. 15 because of repeated guerrilla attacks on their forces. The Administration regards the 50% mark as the point of no return for a total pullout.

The Geneva accords provide for withdrawal of all Soviet troops from Afghanistan by Feb. 15. Soviet officials said they expect to complete the process by Dec. 31.

The accords also stipulate an end to outside interference in Afghan internal affairs and to support of the guerrillas by Pakistani, U.S. and other military interests. The U.N. Good Offices Mission, a 50-person group of observers from several nations, was established to monitor implementation.

However, at the time of the signing, the United States and Pakistan reserved the right to continue supplying the resistance if the Soviets also continued arming the Afghan government.

To ‘Start Afresh’

U.N. Undersecretary General Diego Cordovez, who has just returned from a round of shuttle diplomacy between Kabul and Islamabad, reported Saturday on his trip and on mutual accusations of violations, saying Pakistan and Afghanistan had agreed to “turn the page” and “start afresh” on implementing the accords.

It was not clear immediately what impact the arms cutoff might have on the resistance and its current offensive to seize several major provincial centers.

The resistance has suffered several recent setbacks on the ground.

But U.S. officials said the resistance is well supplied with arms.

“They’re flush,” one U.S. official said of the guerrillas.