Cristiani Says Leftist Rebels Will Turn to Terrorism, Slayings
President Alfredo Cristiani predicted Friday that leftist guerrillas will launch a wave of assassinations and other terrorist attacks and said it is “natural” that thousands of Salvadorans are trying to flee the violence.
The U.S. government used two chartered airliners Thursday to evacuate 282 Americans from El Salvador.
Cristiani said he hopes the weekend summit between President Bush and Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev in Malta will lead to a cutoff of arms supplies from Cuba and Nicaragua to the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front, which launched a massive military offensive against his government on Nov. 11.
“That would be good,” Cristiani said at a news conference. “I have no doubt that the Soviet Union can turn the key to get Cuba and Nicaragua from exporting revolution.”
Cristiani suspended diplomatic and commercial relations with Nicaragua last Sunday after a plane apparently carrying Soviet-built SAM-7 anti-aircraft missiles from Nicaragua to the FMLN crashed in El Salvador.
Cristiani said the rebels have fired two missiles at Salvadoran jets in recent days but missed.
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