THE GULF WAR : In the Soviet Union

An opinion POLL published by the independent news agency Interfax showed 63% of Soviets support the allies and 8% support Iraq. The remaining 29% were undecided. More than 2,000 people were questioned in 30 towns and 17 villages, it said. A senior Soviet officer told the Defense Ministry’s newspaper that the MILITARY fears the Gulf War could spill over onto Soviet territory. “Even if we discount the idea of an intentional nuclear strike (by the United States), one cannot exclude a simple accident, a computer error or sabotage,” said Maj. Gen. Sergei Bogdanov, head of the Soviet General Staff’s Operations Research Center. The Soviet republic of Azerbaijan is about 150 miles from Iraq.