European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - September 25, 1978, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 12 the stars and stripes monday september 25, 1978 Tom Wicker Summit ended image of Carter incompetence after the Summit conference it s tempting but not particularly useful to play the fascinating game of who won and therefore who lost this temptation is almost irresistible now that the Summit participants with an Eye to Domestic political pressures Are interpreting the agreement in the Best Possi ble terms for their Side. Prime minister begin for example says he agreed to suspend Israel s West Bank settlements policy Only for a three month negotiation period with Egypt not for the full five year period of West Bank self Rule everybody else apparently thought was agreed upon. But such disputes do not seem insurmountable and begin probably is the Best judge of How to reassure his own electorate As Well As the vitally interested american jewish Community. Besides there s really no need to count the number of concessions any one Side made or to try to measure who took the toughest stance. There s enough Success to go around and make everyone a Winner in this remarkable dra  was Able at one and the same time to maintain much of his position on the West Bank even a claim however tenuous to israeli sovereignty while having his own plan for that Region accepted for the considerable Concession that it represented All along. And unless the Knesset loses its senses Over the Sinai settlements peace with Egypt is now his Vir you Hap Abbu Lapinto Ira Eaker seeking real cause for Carrier veto president Carter s veto of the weapons authorization Bill because of its Large nuclear powered Carrier surprised Many and shocked the Navy. His explanation was that he believed the $2 billion authorized for the big Carrier could be better spent on other defense items which had been Cut in the Bill such As research and development readiness for nato forces and funds for maintenance and repair of weapons. He also contended that a conventionally powered Carrier Oil Burne which he planned to include in the 1980 budget would be adequate and much less expensive. There was also the question which had been raised during the congressional de Bate on the Bill that Large carriers were More vulnerable to submarines than smaller less expensive combat vessels such As helicopter carriers and other mis Sile ships. Defense Secretary Harold Brown stressed that one of the main reasons for the veto was that the Navy s plan for More big carriers would result inevitably in fewer combat vessels because of the obvious limitation of available funds. The present policy he said called for More vessels of smaller size which existing technology made adequately effective. Each of these reasons had adherents in Congress the news Media and elsewhere. They were considerably discredited however when it was realized that appointees of president Carter in the de sense department and bomb had Cut re depot repair and training fund requests of the armed services More severely than had Congress in the vetoed Bill. The Carrier admirals were Quick to Point out that their nuclear Carrier was not any columns comments More expensive than the conventionally powered one promised by the administration All things considered. The $2 billion for the nuclear Carrier included a 13-year Supply of fuel. When this Supply of Oil at present and prospective prices is consid ered plus the necessary Colliers the nuclear Carrier might actually prove cheaper Over the years. There is also the very grave question of the continued availability of Petroleum since Russia now has the naval and air Power strategically located to jeopardize our foreign Oil Supply. It is now fairly evident that we must look elsewhere for the real reasons for Carter s Carrier veto. I suggest that the following facts be considered the nuclear Carrier May have been can celeb As was the by bomber my missile and the Neutron bomb because it provided a modernization of our strategic defensive triad. The Carrier had also been recommended by nearly All of our military experts As had each of the others. That is clearly a Handicap in weapons selection under this administration controlled by pacifists and unilateral disarmament advocates. There is also a Clear Cut disagreement about the Navy s Mission Between this administration and our military leaders. The military holds that the Navy s mis Sion is threefold to help protect our Island Homeland to keep Pur sea lanes open to help project our military Power against an aggressive enemy s Home base. The present administration does not agree that the Navy is needed to project our Power against Russia. Such a naval capability the pacifists and disarmament advocates contend is provocative destabilizing and a threat to Salt ii. As the debate on the Large nuclear car Rier continues it will help in reaching a vital valid conclusion if the factual positions of both sides Are clearly understood. C los Angeles times tally for the signing. President Sadat of Egypt achieved the return of All the Sinai together with the israeli airfields located there without giving up anything essential to his country. He can now be rid of the heavy burdens of War with Israel and his claim to have established also a framework by which the other Arab nations can achieve peace with Israel is plausible and honorable even if As is Likely few of those nations Avail them selves of it. The palestinians even if not represented at Camp David in fact now have the real possibility of developing eventually a palestinian state on the West Bank de spite begin s insistence on Israel s claim to sovereignty. Such a state might be years in the making and it would not re sult from the liquidation of Israel As Soi palestinians might prefer but the Frame work indisputably exists Only waiting to be utilized by palestinians of courage and vision. Finally and even if the largest possibilities of the Summit agreements do not materialize president Carter May Well have achieved the vital Success that had eluded him in his first troubled 19 months in of fice. That Success cannot be measured by the polls that Are Likely now to show his popularity and Job approval rating on the Rise for poll ratings Rise and fall with events and circumstances As Carter s will continue to do. Rather Carter s Pivotal role at Camp David actually As begin termed it the Jimmy Carter Summit May have dispelled the notion of an incompetent president not up to the High level tasks of managing the Economy dealing with con Gress and competing with the leaders of the world. Though his Success at Camp David dealt with Only one of these areas its repercussions will be Felt in the others no body hereafter will be Able to take lightly the president who made possible such extraordinary strides toward peace in the Middle East. The Triumph moreover was uniquely Carter esque. It was in the first place comprehensive in the consistent Carter pattern of seeking full scale settlements of Complex matters the Energy crisis for example or election Reform or civil serv ice Reform. At last the president has a comprehensive Success to show the sceptics. In the second place the Camp David agreements seem to be fundamentally the result of the degree of Trust that developed Between begin and Sadat and to Foster such Trust May have been something that could Only have been done by Jimmy car Ter the born again Christian the Amateur but Earnest Diplomat the unknown who in 1976 persuaded a nation to believe in him can anyone imagine Henry Kissinger for All his brilliance having brought these Dif Ferent men and these opposed nations so closely together All this will remain True no matter what the states of the Middle East do with the opportunities so unexpectedly created. But for Carter As for those nations Camp David was really Only a beginning. If he is now strengthened for his dealings with Congress if Confidence in him As manager of the nation s diplomacy is Likely to create Confidence in him As manager of the Economy he still has to build upon this first achievement. Success May Breed Success it surely demands More Success to avoid being quickly forgotten. Now Carter has told the United steel workers that he will soon announce Tough new anti inflation measures. Nothing else he has said suggests that the new program will be Tough enough and it not nothing achieved at Camp David can make it effective. And Carter s most essential business is still the management of the Domestic Economy a problem no less Complex than the Middle East As Well As a Good Deal closer Home to most americans c new York times the opinions expressed in the columns and cartoons on this Page represent those of the authors and Are in no Way to be considered As representing the views of the smis and stripes or the United states government