Shultz Assures Jewish Groups That U.S. Won’t Limit Soviet Immigrants

Secretary of State George P. Shultz assured American Jewish representatives Tuesday that despite having to handle unexpectedly high numbers of Soviet Jewish emigres with limited federal funds, the United States is not trying to limit or discourage Soviet Jews from resettling in this country.

“The bottom line remains that the doors are open; there is absolutely no change on that score,” State Department spokesman Charles Redman said. Shultz told representatives of the National Conference on Soviet Jewry that he and President Reagan will press the issue of liberalized Jewish emigration when they meet with Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev today.

The meeting came amid revelations that the Administration has stopped its practice of treating Soviet Jews as a group automatically entitled to refugee status. Jewish groups say that since September, 173 Soviet Jews in Rome have been denied refugee status and that other Jews seeking visas in Moscow have been told by U.S. diplomats to expect delays of a year or more.