NATO Forecasts High Soviet Deficits

The decline in the Soviet economy this year will be sharper than last year, and the budget deficit could be four times higher than expected, a North Atlantic Treaty Organization report concluded Thursday

NATO’s Economic Committee also said that prospects for the Soviet economy are bleak as long as the country remains in the grip of political turmoil. Last year, the Soviet economy shrank by 2%, said the study, which used Soviet data and NATO estimates.

The report said the main reason for uncertainty about the Soviet economy is Moscow’s resistance to granting political and economic autonomy to its restless republics. The economy remains centralized, with President Mikhail S. Gorbachev “in control of key levers,” the report said.