European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - April 26, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 2 the stars and stripes tuesday april 26.1988 Outlook for soviet reforms is Bleak . Study reviews economic program Washington a soviet Leader Mikhail s. Gorbachev s economic Reform program ran into prob lems last year and things Aren t Likely to improve in the near future. . Intelligence agencies said in a report released sunday. Unless Gorbachev can do something to turn the Economy around he May find himself in trouble said the Bleak review conducted jointly by the Cia and the defense intelligence Agency. Tension within society and the leadership will in crease it said. Bureaucrats will become increasingly frustrated by loss of privileges and status and by de mands that they show greater initiative. Military Lead ers arc Likely to become More and More uneasy if Bene fits from the Industrial modernization fail to materialize. Soviet citizens will need to see some improvement in living standards if the regime is to achieve necessary gains in worker productivity and avoid widespread  the report concluded that failure to head off these tensions would at a minimum make it More difficult to pursue his economic program vigorously and could ultimately Call into question his Strong political Posi Tion at  Gorbachev and supporters of his reforms have acknowledged resistance at the highest Levels. There have been reports in Moscow of conflict Over Reform Mea sures Between Gorbachev and no. 2 Kremlin Leader Yegor k. I Gachev. Criticism of the slow Pace of Gorbachev s reforms earlier led to the firing of Boris n. Meluin As Moscow communist party Boss. The study is an annual review of the soviet econ omy and was presented april 13 to the congressional joint economic committee. A declassified version was released by the panel. The latest study comes out three years after Gorba Chev came to Power. He inherited an aging extremely inefficient Economy and made in modernization one of his top priorities the study noted. After some Early Success Gorbachev s ambitious program to create a modern More dynamic soviet Economy ran into trouble in 1987," the study said. Familiar problems with poor weather and transportation bottlenecks were compounded by the disruptions caused by the introduction of economic re  the soviet Gross National product the total value of All goods and services produced grew Only 0.5 percent last year the study noted. That rate was reminiscent of the late Brezhnev period it said referring to Leo nid Brezhnev a Gorbachev predecessor who prevailed Over a largely stagnant Economy in the late 1970s and Early 198ft. The study noted that the soviet Gnu grew by 3.9 percent in 1986, the first full year of Gorbachev s term compared with 0.6 percent in 1985. By contrast the . Gross National product grew 2.9 percent both in 1986 and 1987. However the Ameri can Economy measures a much larger base and comparisons Are difficult. The soviet Economy was hampered by bad weather last year particularly in agriculture where output fell 3 percent the study said. But ined to be civilian machine building sector did t grow at Al. The real loser in 1987 appeared to be the consumer who now three years into Gorbachev s economic program has seen almost no increase in his Standard of living the study said. It also said that for a variety of reasons the Short term Outlook for Gorbachev s economic program is not  among those reasons Are confusion about guidelines for self financing reforms deficiencies in 1987 machine building that will slow the Speed of modernization transportation problems and poor prospects for improved worker productivity. Gorbachev also needs to be belter organized the study concluded. Although Gorbachev s program is comprehensive it is in some respects inconsistent particularly with regard to timing. For example Hii goals for an imme Diate acceleration in the growth or National income and a pronounced improvement in the Quality of out put Are in our View fundamentally  in addition his plan to change traditional economic planning and administrative procedures dramatically has been thrust upon a largely unprepared bureaucracy the study said. News updates vote of Confidence Rome up the Senate gave prime minister Ciriaco do Mita a vote of Confidence confirm ing his government in office but the ending of the six week political crisis was overshadowed by a Dis Pute Over Middle East policy. The five parties of do Milas resurrected coalition voted solidly together to approve the Confidence motion by 177 votes to 106, with one abstention. The chamber of deputies had approved the government. Mecham probe Phoenix Ariz. A Ari Zona s attorney general has launched a formal investigation into whether former gov. Evan Mecham broke the Law when he urged supporters to have a lapse of memory about their support for him if they become potential jurors at his criminal trial. Attorney general Bob Corbin said he decided to launch the probe after first looking into whether Mecham s statements assuming they Are True could be a violation of criminal statutes. Mecham acknowledged he made the remark. Iron Contra judge bars defendants from presenting witnesses at hearing Washington a the judge in the Iran Contra Case barred defendants monday from presenting witnesses at a pretrial hearing on whether the prosecution relied on testimony Given Congress under a Grant of immunity. . District judge Gerhard a. Gesull took the action and gave Oliver l. North and two of his co defendants a Tongue lashing because they disobeyed his order establishing procedures for the hearing. The fourth defendant retired air Force Mai. Gen. Richard v. Secord testified without immunity. Gesull said the three immunized defendants ignored his order that they Independent counsel Lawrence e. Walsh was allowed to testify and he told the court of an elaborate procedure he established so that his entire staff would avoid exposure to the immunized Testi Mony especially from news reports. Present a single grand jury witness who testifying with immunity during the might testify that his grand jury test Imp Iran cont hearings were North a for nyl immunized Mer National Security Council staff congressional testimony member his one time Boss former a instead lawyers for the three Umu tonal Security adviser John m. Poin sized defendants sought to present three Dexter and businessman Albert Hakim witnesses. Dole urges Senate to ratify inf treaty Canadian Soldier Dies in traffic Accident Lahr West Germany Sis a Canadian forces Europe Soldier die monday in a traffic Accident near the town of Stinach a forces spokesman said. The Accident occurred at 2 05 . And the victim was Riding in a military vehicle said army capt. John Girard spokesman for 1st regt. Royal Canadian horse arty. The victim was not the Only occupant of the military vehicle but there were no other injuries. Girard said. The victim s name was withheld Pend ing notification of relatives. Girard declined to release other de tails of he Accident. Washington a Senate re publican Leader Bob Dole urged the sen ate monday to ratify the medium Range missile treaty before next month s mos cow Summit and appealed to senators to avoid leaping into positions adversarial to our  but Senate majority Leader Robert c. Byrd d-w.va., told Dole i will not be rushed or  Byrd vowed not to schedule debate on the treaty until outstanding issues have been dealt with including determining whether or not the soviet Union agrees that the pact bans such Star wars weapons As those using laser beams or particle beam generators. President Reagan has said he will be Hamstrung during Bis Summit meeting with soviet Leader Mikhail s. Gorbachev in late May and unable to make further arms control Progress if the Senate has not ratified the intermediate Range nuclear forces treaty by that time. Dole said the president deserves to be accommodated. Byrd replied "1 want to accommodate the president too and i will accommodate the president where i can. But i m going to accommodate the Senate and our responsibilities under the Constitution first before any other per son or office. And the people Down at the White House had better understand  Byrd has said he will not Call up the inf treaty for debate before May 9 and will not do so then if outstanding prob lems have not been resolved. The Senate armed services commit tee and the Senate intelligence commit tee Are trying to resolve the futuristic weapons Issue so far without Success. The treaty is silent on such weapons but . Negotiators contend that the pact bans All medium Range weapons no matter How they arc armed. Dole warned senator against threat ening to add to the treaty condition that would require it to be Lent bade to the soviet for new negotiations. That amounts he said to leaping into positions adversarial to our presi Dent he called for an intensified Effort to find reasonable solution to the issues which have Arisen during the Senate s examination of the inf  strikers protest Lebanon car bombing Tripoli Lebanon a Tripoli was brought to a standstill monday As citizens went on strike to protest the nation s worst car bombing in three Yean. The death toll in the blast Rose to 70. Police said 100 people remained hospitalized following saturday s blast in a crowded vegetable Market in this North Ern port City. A Man wounded in the explosion in the Low income Tabba Neh District died Early monday increasing the total num Ber of dead to 70. Schools shops cafes restaurants Cin emas Bank and other businesses were closed throughout Lebanon s second largest City whose 850,000 people Are predominantly sunni moslem. The strike on the second Day of a 48-hour period of Public mourning was called by City leaders. The explosion claimed the most lives of any car bombing in Lebanon since March 8, 1985, when 80 people were killed and 250 wounded in an explosion in the shiite moslem District of Birel Abed in South Beirut. No group has claimed re sensibility for saturday s blast in Tripoli to Miles North of Beirut. Earlier car bombings have been blamed on sectarian life stemming from Lebanon s 13-year-old civil War be tween moslem and Christian As Wen As feuds involving palestinians syrian and israelis