European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - April 24, 1977, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Poge 8 the stars and stripes april 1977 combat ready by Craig Whitney Germany not James who has been assigned to the watchtower at observation Post Alfa Here on the East German Border for three will never forget the last week of january 1977 normally Only East German Border guards and rabbits Snow up in his infrared night vision it was cold and getting dark when he and Henry Lowe looked across the mine Fields and the lethal steel mesh Fence of the Border and saw a soviet heavy with growing apprehension they counted 147 tanks and armoured personnel cantors of what is known As the group of soviet forms in Germany moving into position in the lying Over the rolling Hills this is the real Hinti Cooney recalling that Ghl As he peered at a Concrete lower full of East German guards i Xiv the radio communications got pretty hot that this is what we re Here they eventually concluded that the rus sians were on a practice a that Init incident underlined was that the us 7th army soldiers Are outnumbered Ziol by the soviet forces across the Kast German Border facing the american tanks Here Are to soviet by masses of Artil Lery unmatched in the american the balance is no better than it was five scares feels confident of support Lisbon i api Premier Mario scares returned from a today visit to the saturday and said i was confident Ameri Ca would help arrange a billion loan fur his financially troubled soars said hi1 was highly satisfied with a misting he had with resident 1 be said Carter had shown great understanding of Portugal the Premier is seeking a million balance of payments allocation from the s As part of a 5 billion package to which other nations arc being asked to con the Carter administration has endorsed snares request and is urging other West Ern countries contribute the allocation must be approved by con soars said congressmen with whom he had talked had shown full comprehension of our need for tins in Eskiert or tar ius taken the live of writing to various Heads of Xiu about it Tui at the moment negotiations under Way through Diplo Matic he said billion deficit Wilh a imputation about tit of deficit of Billiotti in w7ii Soares said the Cit should be re diked by about million this year in new York before meeting with Soares said he told us business men the possibilities for further u in vestment in Portugal Are very positive the Premier a inet with International monetary fund officials and world in Tufik president Robert s Soares said the of the s Nir base at in the Portu Griem azure is lands was mentioned Only in kissing the lease tin the base expired Tiree years but the us ruts continued to of cup it under an automatic officials Here run predicted lease renewal terms would be during the trip Svarcs resumed a few hours before the country begins two clays of celebrations marking the military revolt that overthrew a Iio Vearold i relist dictatorship in april years but then the Vietnam War had left the army in Europe drug Ridden and bereft of the Best Leader today there is a Strong feeling that the morale problems have been reduced if not yet partly because of grow ing awareness of soviet it is a Volunteer army and soldiers Are More responsive to authority than draftees used to the informal uniforms and Long hair of the Vietnam Era Are drugs use no longer appears Young enlisted men who used to look Down on career soldiers do not snicker now when they Salute with sir in the Ullh armoured Cav whose shield is a Black horses or combat even the Slang is less emotion ally charged and less career sergeants Are called lifers less frequently the strongest words of derision one hears arc for a and Ore who curries Blacks and other minorities make up 30 per cent of the forces in twice As Many As under the yet in those Days racial tensions ran much higher than they seem to do there was a race riot involving american soldiers in Stuttgart in before the generals and colonels recognized the necessity of educating All ranks in race people Are More aware of race prob said 1st Robert Steward in bad a Young Black enlisted Man in Fulda who said he joined the army in i97s to make some Money admitted to having Only a few White friends and there Are bars Here that wont let them to id say color Doest make any Black soldiers do not separate themselves so conspicuously from Whites after duty hours As they did five years and the Blacks special salutes and hand shakes Are not seen so both drug use and a related indicator of seem to have diminished dramatically in the last two there were in the year that ended june compared Wilh in commanders thai the drug problem has not yet been attitudes toward drugs seem to have specialist Woodruff Smith of was working in a communications trailer while part of his Divi Sion was in training at asked about the availability of he there Are drugs Here where theres theres but a lot of people nowadays know that drugs cant help they can Only Hurt the emphasis has switched to another one Long tolerated and even encouraged in the army since april 1 no military bar in Europe has been allowed to serve a and parties have been officially in other aspects of the morale events that used to Lead to hitter com such As we Klong training exercises in the unusually severe Spring now seem Loix welcomed As a change from tin boredom of Barracks at the army training Center at near the West German czech the other pvt Jeffrey Miller of n c off his Gas mask and opened the Drivers Hatch of his Mio this is he and  his battalion from the 8th division had to repel a numerically Superior invading Force of scores of armoured vehicle thai roared out from behind a smoke Wren just the Way the soviets will do it if we have a said the dision comma in one Lime head of the u s military Aid  the idea of ready is constantly emphasized by the major it As More of a joke a few years when detente was in full Flower and in Terest Iti was entered on trying in Lirt it i Rump reduction in in a major report Cut though still army in Europe is Able to fulfil its Mission in cd the forces hero for not having enough ready equipment and troops in place close to the Border to repel a sur prise under such congressional the army in Europe has increased the ratio of combat troops to support personnel from 61 to 39 three years ago to 67 to head quarters the tanks and artillery used on Border patrols carry prescribed Ammu though they keep their guns pointed Westward when they up to the Tench Lor a look the helicopter pilots of the Lith a Mored cavalry say that since the israeli Arab tank Battles of the 1973 War their mis Sion has been changed to Lake into account the growing strength of the soviet tank forces that would pour across the Border in a we would have tried to defeat the enemy right Al the said Mai Kenneth hamburger of now the idea is to gain time and try to cause attrition from the a surprising sight on Maneu vers and in but not yet in frontline combat is the growing presence of women in All almost twice As Many As last according to Walter a staff officer in the whose average age is 18 to compared with 25 years is not As educated As he but Hes easier to train robber seen via satellite great train robber Ronald Biggs speaking on Tandon bbl television news says he deserves a Royal Pardon because Lithus not done anything Dis honest since jul Ilbrink 12 years Biggs spoke by satellite from Braiu where he lives after being granted sex tradition proof he said he Hopes one Day to be Able to travel freely in a photo Amin escaped 2 recent try on paper says Kenya Ali ugandan 1 resident Idi Amir twice escaped assassination earlier this a kenyan tvs paper reported the Querij informed a truces in said amins presidential Range Rover which a As ambushed april 3 m Northern and two of its were shut dead Trif paper said was nut m the vehicle at the having ordered Security men to drive it ahead of his party As he left after a visit to his Home in West Nile province a few Miles from Kobe in assailants opened fire on the killing two occupants arid seriously wounding a third Tow survivor go a m re turned to Kobosko and was airlifted out by account said the second assassination bid reportedly was timed for Raster when plot ters planned to ram amins car with a truck in Buger Ere 35 Miles East of the to Jamilan capital of the tres were quoted As saying they believed one of the players tipped off these purity police before the plan could be carried since coming to Power in a military coup in january amm has survived numerous assassination attempts and coup Pauli in one of the More grenades were thrown at his motorcade near Kam Pala last june amins Driver was killed but the president himself dived for cover and then drove himself to safety in an escort vehicle