Gorbachev Endorses U.S. Role in Gulf : Soviet Union: He says the superpowers are cooperating well in the region and contradicts the objections of other Kremlin officials.

President Mikhail S. Gorbachev, contradicting objections raised by other Soviet officials to the U.S. troop buildup in the Persian Gulf region, said Friday that the superpowers are cooperating well in the region and that he does not fear the United States is seeking a permanent military presence there.

“We have to be very responsible, all of us, so as to prevent a large-scale military conflict,” Gorbachev told a rare news conference. “I believe this is our common concern and we are promoting it.”

The Soviet president’s statements came a day after two high-ranking officials expressed concern at the U.S. buildup in the gulf region.

Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander M. Belonogov had complained that there are no guarantees that American troops will leave after the present crisis ends, and Gen. Vladimir N. Lobov, commander of the Warsaw Pact military alliance, had warned that the deployment of so many American troops in Saudi Arabia could alter the strategic balance.

But Gorbachev, although he pressed once again for a political solution, said the United States is acting within its rights by moving into Saudi Arabia and that both superpowers are seeking to avoid a military clash.

“I don’t think the American leadership, after political solutions to this conflict have been found, will preserve” the military presence in the gulf, he said. And he predicted that limits on troops would be part of any resolution reached.

At the same time, Gorbachev warned that the buildup of forces “makes the situation very explosive, very dangerous.”

The Soviet Union voted for a U.N. resolution allowing the use of force to enforce economic sanctions against Iraq but has refused to take part in the U.S.-led naval blockade, saying that other countries are better equipped for the task.

Moscow has been noncommittal about whether it would contribute troops to a multinational force if the United Nations should create such a force, neither ruling out the idea nor showing any enthusiasm for it.

Gorbachev said Soviet officials are making an energetic diplomatic effort to prevent war, using “telephone calls, conversations, work within the Security Council, our envoy’s visit to the region, discussions with President (Saddam) Hussein--everything possible.”

But he got in an undiplomatic dig at the Iraqi leader, saying that “only those who think illogically” could reject proposals for a peaceful resolution of the crisis.

Gorbachev rejected complaints that the Soviet Union is losing its prestige by not taking a forceful military role in the gulf region.

“That is not so,” he said. “I think everything will depend on whether we are successful using political measures.”

The Soviet Union, Iraq’s longtime friend and arms supplier, is uniquely placed to serve as intermediary between Iraq and the West, but Foreign Ministry spokesmen have said repeatedly that Moscow does not relish the role and sees no need for it as long as Western diplomatic relations with Iraq are intact.