European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - August 3, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 the stars and stripes sunday August 3. 1966 columns Tom Wicker House May Force Reagan to accept Compromise once again a soviet american arms control conference Hai broken up in frustration with inc  intransigent in defense of president Reagan s Deci Sion to abandon the Una Aufice Salt ii treaty. But finally the House of representatives May be ready to Pui a acre pressure on Reagan for movement on important arms control issues. A showdown is expected a amendments to he de sense department authorization Bill that would pc veni Reagan from exceeding the limits of Salt 11.continue a ban on the testing of anti satellite weapons and Frew inc Star wars defense program Al h86 funding Levels. But the most important amendment would impose a one year moratorium on nuclear tests in excess of font Kiloton yield. Save for inc asat test ban. Passed last year on the third iry such ambitious proposals would have had Little Chance until recently and even now no one Dis counts Reagan s formidable ability to turn possible congressional defeat into Vic pry. A scheduled Vole on overriding his veto of a textiles Bill May make some members reluctant to oppose him Loo often. But liberals Long associated with arms control efforts such As Edward Markcy of Massachusetts Thomas Downey of new York and pal Schroeder of Colorado now have gained important support from los Aspin of Wisconsin chairman of the House armed services committee Rich Gephardt of Missouri a possible democratic presidential candidate and key members who have often supported Reagan on defense issues. Aspin May be partly motivated by potential Liberal opposition to his Eric nation of the armed services chairmanship Jim Wright of Texas the majority Leader and Tom Foley of Washington inc democratic whip will sup port inc amendments and May speak on behalf of All or some of them. Congressional sources say even some republicans have concluded thai Progress on arms control will require pressure on the president after More than five Yean the Reagan administration has achieved Little in arms control Many Mem Bers believe Reagan and other officials Are not eager to make or keep agreements that might hamper a . Arms buildup. The collapse of the Salt ii conference in Geneva May Sharpen this impression. The administration also has failed to con Vince even some supporters that a nuclear test ban cannot be verified adequately and repeated extensions of a soviet lest moratorium now scheduled to expire in a week have suggested that Moscow is serious about achieving a negotiated test ban. The Salt ii amendment would deny funds for the Flora Lewis i there deployment of weapons beyond inc numerical limit set by the agreement Hus preventing Reagan from breaking out of Ilas he has said he would. That amendment together with the extended asat test ban is Given a Good Chance for passage. The freeze of funding for the president s strategic defense initiative and the amendment imposing the nuclear test moratorium will be More difficult not least because the latter would halt the development of a crucial component of the ski the a Ray laser i requires nuclear explosions yielding More than 20 kit Lions. The amendment would Cut off funds for any test yielding More than one Kiloton a proposal the administration can be expected to oppose by All available Means. The moratorium would not take effect until Jan. I 1987, and not at All unless Moscow also halted tests Over one Kiloton and agreed to the Mutual emplacement of enough seismic devices to guarantee Ade quate verification perhaps 25 to 30 Black boxes  by King pm term syndic in each country s territory. The delay and the one Ion ceiling Are compromises that would allow some last minute testing and some minor tests even after the cutoff Dale. But weapons experts generally agree thai test below the one Kiloton level Are militarily insignificant certainly that new strategic weapons could not be devel oped without tests yielding far in excess of that. House strategists believe thai if they Force Reagan into the one year moratorium Public pressure would prevent the resumption of tests and influence him to do what he has so far refused 10 do enter negotiations for a comprehensive test ban. The Republican controlled Senate is unlikely Loac cent the one year test moratorium but House passage might Force a Compromise say a restricted number of nuclear tests. Even that would be a Welcome Start Loward a comprehensive test ban to repeal the License Reagan now has to lest at will. Cut Vortis Timm nmn s South african juror threatens Commonwealth a surprising debate has opened in Britain on the value of the Commonwealth sparked by the angry quarrel Over South Africa. This is a much bigger question for the British than How to signal revulsion to apartheid. The moral Issue seems to stir people in Britain less than it does Ameri cans perhaps because it is scarcely More than a generation since the United states made racial discrimination illegal. Americans have a closer knowledge of what racism docs to a society. But the Commonwealth no longer called British to stress that no member outranks the others is a National Issue. A number of Stales have threatened to quit unless London joins some kind of consensus on sanctions. That could Lead to a general breakup and in would make a big difference to the United kingdom s standing in inc world. The question will come to a head soon Al a seven slate London Summit conference. In also has the makings of political Cri Sis. Whether or not the Queen Ever authorized a leak about her concerns and she probably did not she is known to cure deeply about her role As head of the Commonwealth. A former senior Mem Ber of her staff once confided that of Al she has seen it was the settlement of the Issue of Rhodesia bringing in Back into the Commonwealth As Zimbabwe that made her proudest. She is Esir cmdr popular and politicians Are More acutely aware of her position now thai Britain s traditional two party system is becoming three party. If no one of them wins a majority in the next election it will be up to the Queen to decide which Leader should be called upon 10 form a government. Many britons Are worried about inc decline of their Homeland the Felt deterioration in the Quality of education the spreading tackiness the loss of influence. It is Trie oddly assorted family of the Commonwealth that still makes the country count for something More than an insular Middle Power. Still the argument has surfaced now of whether inc formal lies remain Worth while for Britain. Lord Beloff a noted historian makes a firm Case for the challengers. He Points out that the institution has Only been kept alive by sacrificing its most important initial elements. It is no longer a defense Community Many of its Mem Bers Are now nonaligned and As he says take positions hostile to he interests of Britain and her  ii is no longer clearly committed Lothe idea of parliamentary democracy. Military dictatorships personal tyrannies and one party slates All exist As equal partners lord Beloff writes. Fur ther he complains Many of them be Lieve the principle of Equality does not preclude their making one sided de mands on their British partner. Al True. But it is also True As the Secretary general of the Commonwealth sir Shri Dalh Ramphal argues that in Addi Tion 10 prestige the club gives Britain Concrete economic advantages and Spe Cial status in Many parts of the world. London would still Deal with the coun tries in Africa the Caribbean and the Pacific if the Commonwealth shrivelled bul relations would focus through Brus Sels and the common Market s Conven Tion for preferences. A breakdown of the association would Cut the special lies that turn coun tries like Canada and Australia to look outward link the Small Stales of the Caribbean to their lands of origin and pro vide help and Community for the 26 mini suite members that have populations of less than a million. All of them Benefit in both practical and emotional ways from the common wealth. Sir Shri Dalh insists. And so does the general world order for while Mem Bers have warred against each other such As India and Pakistan the sense of family does help ease strains. Trie fragmentation of the world has gone very far. The United nations has failed to become the organizing Frame work thai was intended leaving Many of its goals to be sought through common wealth structures. It would be an added blow if South Africa which quit years ago were to achieve the Power to disrupt the rest of the Commonwealth in Pursuit of its racist policies. Sir Shri Dalh Calls for a com Promise on sanctions which prime min ister Margaret Thatcher would Besl serve her nation by accepting. Then she should persuade her Friend president Reagan to go along. What goes on in South Africa is bad enough it should t split friends in the rest or the world. C now York to mob he a Sarx