Page 4-Wednesday, July 18, 1979-The Michigan Daily
SALT
--RY TALK ABOUT weapons ton-
nage and firepower has led most
Americans to drift away from the SALT
II debate out of boredom and concern
for more imminent matters such as
energy. But the boredom or avoidance
of morbid notions such as nuclear war
cannot be ignored, considering that so
many lives would be snuffed out at the
push of a button.
That very potential was the original
impetus for the disarmament talks-to
avoid the almost inevitable result of the
arms race. Now that detente has
replaced Cold War as the byword of the
superpowers' relationship, SALT II
must be ratified without alteration to
sustain this critical diplomacy.
Soviet and American brute force no
longer prevails over the world and
recent evetns prove it. The Pope's trip
to Poland showed that communist
governments can no longer scoff at
papal power, and the Iranian revolution
demonstrated that $20 million in U.S.
arms could not save the Shah. It is now
clear that alliances can break down and
loyalties can shift when conflict occurs
in any system.
Despite the obvious cracks in super-
power control, some SALT critics still
expect the U.S. to play world
"policeman." Several prominent
militarists have complained that due to
declining American military dominan-
ce we were unable to intervene in the
II: Imperfect butvital
.L
Iranian conflict. This mentality should
be absent from our foreign policy, by
now, especially after the lessons of
Vietnam. It is the same manner of
thinking which promotes the arms
race.
That race is neither slowing down nor
under control. While SALT II limits the
total number of conventional strategic
(i.e. long-range) nuclear-weapon
carriers for the two superpowers, the
race reaches new heights of
sophistication. Now the stockpiles and
drawing boards are dominated by
laser-detonated H-bombs, MX missiles,
"killer satellites" and the like. SALT II
affects none of these.
The insatiable appetite for weaponry
will not be appeased or diverted by
SALT II. But neither will the arms race
be constrained by the treaty's rejec-
tion. The symbolic advantages of
ratifying the accords far outweigh the
probable results of the Senate's nixing
them.
If the treaty does not survive the
Senate, detente may not endure either.
The Soviets have said that they will not
renegotiate SALT II if the Senate
amends it. Likewise, it is doubtful that
Soviet President Leonid Brezhnev or
his successor will still be interested in
working on SALT III if the Senate fails
to approve SALT II.
This treaty's sequel may finally put
the brakes on the competition, but the
race will never be over without SALT
II's approval.
The Senate is charged by the Con-
stitution with a watchdog role in treaty
negotiations that some senators are
carrying too far. Senate hawks are
arousing paranoia reminiscent of the
Cold War, which seems in part sincere,
but mostly motivated by political self-
interests.
Presidential hopeful Sen. Howard
Baker, who chairs the Senate commit-
tee hearings on SALT, has already
tossed this political football beyond the
bounds of logic through his vocal op-
position. If he wants to be president, it
is curious that he would endanger
Soviet relations by killing SALT.
SALT's Senate critics seem to be put-
ting their fears of Soviet strategic
superiority before sincere interests in
preserving life by eventually ending the
arms race. While a balance in military
capacity is necessary to prevent either
side from initiating an attack, a slight
tilt in either direction should not spell
war. Neither nation can afford the
destruction which would result.
Therefore, the Senate should dispense
with petty squabbles and swing its sup-
port behind the treaty.
The Soviets, whose lagging economy
begs for lowered defense spending.
need the treaty. Any action toward ar-
ms control also benefits America.
Senators should stop trying to scare the
public with the notion of the U.S.
bowing in appeasement to our Soviet
counterparts, and act in the nation's
best interest.
This nation must strive to prove that
force is not the only method of leader-
ship.
Michigan Daily
Eighty-nine Years of Editorial Freedom
420 Maynard St, Ann Arbor. MI. 48109
Vol. LXXXIX, No. 46-S News Phone: 764 0552
Edited and managed by studen'ts
at the University of Michigan
'Of course you know Sen. Jackson -
in for Ronald Reagan.'
U. S. -S. Africa trade and technical ties grow
By REED KRAMER
WASHINGTON, D.C.-While
diplomatic relations between the
U.S. and South Africa have
plummeted in recent months,
aggravated by South Africa's
latest rejection of the U.S.-
backed settlement for
Namibia-economic and
technical ties between the two
nations have actually grown
stronger.
Here's an overview of those
ties, now the target of increasing
criticism by African leaders:
TRADE: The U.S. has
displaced Britain from its
longtime role as South Africa's
leading trade partner. South
African statistics published last
month show that total imports
and exports between the U.S. and
South Africa in 1978 amounted to
$2.76 billion, compared to $2.67
billion for the U.K.* West Ger-
many was third with $2.3 billion.
A 70.8 PER CENT jump in
South African exports to the U.S.
amounted for the American
takeover of first place, and that
boom was largely the result of in-
creased Krugerrand sales and
the higher prices commanded by
two minerals,-diamonds and
platinum..
MINERALS: An interagency
task force set up by the Carter
administration to examine
American mineral dependency
on South Africa recently con-
cluded that the effects of a cut-off
or lengthy interruption in ship-
ments of chromium, manganese,
vanadium, or platinum, would be
severe and costly, State Depar-
tment sources say.
Although the task force con-
cludes that the lost supplies could
eventually bereplaced and that
substitutes for the rest of the
mineral imports could even more
quickly be found, U.S. mining
firms are forging closer links by
their steadily-rising investments
in South African production.
INVESTMENT; Those mining
ventures are the major reason
why U.S. investment in South
Africa, which grew by 7 per cent
to $1.971 billion in 1977, is expec-
ted to increase even more sub-
stantially this year.
Less noticed but also important
is the growth in the value of
private U.S. holdings in South
African mining stocks. American
investors now own about 25 per
cent of that country's gold shares
with a value of approximately
$1.9 billion, according to a recent
survey by the Johannesburg
brokerage firm Davis Borkum
Hare.
MILITARY SALES: The ex-
tension of the arms embargo to
prohibit sales of all U.S.-made
items, military or not, to the
South African military or police
was announced by Secretary
Vance on November 2,1977.
The administration also can-
celled an export license the Ford
administration had given San-
ders Associates for a $150 million
deal involving sophisticated
ocean surveillance equipment.
Although the company will not
comment, there are indications
that the deal is going through
anyway, and there is con-
siderable evidence that South
Africa's drive to build a well-
equipped military machine has
had some notable success.
A military trade journal, Ar-
mies and Weapons, says South
Africa has obtained "a sizeable
batch" of M-113 155 mm artillery
guns and will soon replace them
with more modern M-109s-both
of U.S. origin. The BBC disclosed
that an American/Canadian
firm, Space Research, has sup-
plied tens of thousands of 155 mm
artillery shells to South Africa,
which has just announced-
production of its own 155 mm
weapon.
CITING A WESTERN in-
telligence source, the Washington
Post's Jim Hoagland says South
Africa bought 25Italian-produced
205A Bell helicopters in 1974 or
1975. And the St. Louis Post-
Dispatch has cited Control Data
Corporation documents showing
that computer equipment made
by that firm was sold last year to
the South African police. Most
recently, Business Week reports
that Eaton Corporation is con-
sidering involvement in a South
African gear-and-axle manufac-
turing venture whose customers
would include the military.
NUCLEAR: Washington is
still awaiting a formal South
African response to the step-by-
step formula the State Depar-
tment proposed for breaking the
deadlock which has put bilateral
nuclear cooperation "on hold." In
November, the U.S. refunded just
over $1 million South Africa had
paid for nuclear fuel that is
currently not exportable since
Pretoria has not agreed to full-
scale international observation of
its nuclear facilities, as required
under American law.
Those economic and military
. ties help explain Why Vorster and
his successor have felt able to
defy Western pressures
proceed with their own cour:
action in South Africa. The B
government has now made
that it sees South Africa's
terests best served by reject
not accepting, U.S -sponst
settlement schemes for Rhod
and Namibia. Having succee
in their view, by standing I
and appealing over the hea
the President to the Amer
people, the South Africans s
determined to try it again.
That leaves the administr
with few options. Its attem
persuade South Africa that i
national cooperation
domestic reform offer the
chance of insulating itself I
spreading guerrilla warfare
Soviet expansionism has
rebuffed. The appeal to
interest has not worked, and
ctions and similar foral
pressure seem most impro
especially after the Sen
large vote margin opposing
Rhodesian embargo. For
and his advisors, the chal
has never been greater.
Reed.Karner, an editor of
News Service, wrote this pi
Pacific News Service.