European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 01, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 28 the stars and stripes monday tuesday. January 1/2,1990 news briefs . Planes bring supplies to Romania on third try Rhein main a West Germany is two . Air Force c-l30s landed sunday in Bucharest Romania on their third attempt since Friday to deliver medical Supples to the revolution torn East bloc country. Snow had prevented landings on Friday and sat  air Force spokesman  planes were expected to return to Rhein main on sunday night. Morocco asks for help to Battle 170-mile Oil spill Rabat Morocco up Morocco appealed sunday for assistance against a Slick or70,000 tons of crude Oil threatening the North african nation s Atlantic shores officials  Oil belched from an iranian Tanker dec. 19. Moroccan authorities asked French explorer and Marine conservationist Jacques Yves Cousteau for help with the spill from the iranian Tanker shark. The spill has extended Over 170 Miles of coastline near Rabat stretching from Meh Idya North of the capital to mohammedia to its South. In Paris Cousteau said he was shocked that a major ecological catastrophe could take place for 12 Days without receiving Media attention. Officials in Rabat  Slick is drawing dangerously close to the coast and threatens to upset the ecological balance As Well As rum Tou Nam in the area. No withdrawal planned yet Bush plans to visit wounded continued from Page 1 published report that agreement was near on an arrangement to turn Noriega Over to the United states through the panamanian government. United press International reported. We continue to work with the Vatican. The Situa Tion is yet to be resolved presidential spokesman Marlin Fitzwater said in a statement released on air Force one the presidential plane As Bush flew to san Antonio. Fitz Waitr also said that National Security adviser Brent scowcroft said he knew nothing of the purported arrangement up said Bush also conceded that the . Raid Friday on the residence of the nicaraguan ambassador in pan Ama City was a screw up and Shoulin i have happened. Bush said that although he had no immediate plans to pull out any of the some 26,000 . Troops now m Panama he hoped to bring some of them Home very  i think the sooner we can have our troops that went Down there out the better it will be. Bush said. Late from Page 1 Rcd Crystal balls. We go out on a limb. Some of these predictions arc unconscionable. Nobody Ever believes us. Some of these Are pretty far fetched Waas  said he has been president or rather acting president of the club since it began. The nominating committee Nash t reported Back yet he said. Would t it be something if i was i made president the club which claims 6,500 members worldwide and another half million who Haven t got around to joining yet is currently in the Middle of the i97gmembership drive. Waas said. That was a Dull year. We did t do much that year he  1989 predictions include. Donald Trump will somehow get his name in the p Jim Bakker will be rewarded by not having to live with Tammy fac for the next 40 years. Gerry Ford will turn out to be right on his statement that Poland is not a communist country. A Star named Rob will sink to a new Lowe when his video goes National. Millions will go Batty Over Jack Nicholson. Era from Page 1 Eastern Europe in 1989. Critics see the spending As a financial Binge that will Cost the United Stales dearly in the 1990s. Between 1980 and 1988, spending on procurement and on research and development increased 75 per cent operations and maintenance spending increased 32 percent and spending for personnel increased 13 percent All in inflation adjusted dollars. The Pentagon used some of its Cash on highly sophisticated expensive weapons. Older weapons were kept to maintain inventories. Major modernization occurred in significant areas. In 1980, there were no my Battle tanks no Bradley fighting vehicles and no Apache helicopters. Today there arc More than 4,000 my tanks 3,500 Bradley and More than 400 apaches. There were few Black Hawk helicopters. Now there Are More than 900. The United states had no Trident ballistic missile submarines or Ticonderoga guided missile cruisers when the decade began. It now has eight Ohio class Trident and 11 of the cruisers. It had fewer than 150 f-16s and no Fa-18s. Today it has More than 1,200 f 16s and nearly 500 Fa-18s. Between 1980 and the end of 1987, . Nuclear Force capability increased by 70 percent and conventional ground Power by More than 50 percent Accord ing to the Pentagon. The capabilities of the tactical air forces More than doubled and american naval anti air and anti submarine warfare capabilities increased As Well. Service members also got a pay boost. Hikes of 10.7 percent in 1980 and 14.3 percent in 1981 brought military pay up to Par with salaries of civilians with equal skills. But since then raises have Fellon to be tween 3 percent and 4 percent. On two occasions for Mer defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger wanted no raises but Congress rejected the proposals. Nevertheless As the 1980s ended service salaries had fallen 11 percent behind the civilian sector congressional Fig ures snowed. Gen. Colin Powell chairman of the joint chiefs of staff said that because of the buildup in the 1980s, the Quality of today s military is As High As at any time in our nation s  the powerful movement toward peace Freedom and democracy sweeping the Globe today is ample Evi Dence of what a Strong America and a Strong free world can do he said in written responses to questions by the stars and stripes. Powell  strength begins with Quality people and extends to excellent discipline morale training and readiness of a Force that has been Given modern weapons systems to operate. We have made improvements in logistics and have enhanced the level of  when defense officials talk about a Quality Force they re referring to the fact that in 1980 barely two thirds of new recruits had High school diplomas. Now More than 90 percent do. Retention of personnel also has improved due largely to better pay and benefits. Not everyone agrees with the general s assessment of the spending in the 1980s. In terms of military strength we re worse off said defense department planner and in House critic Franklin c. Spinney. Yes the people arc better. But the equipment s  this buildup in defense was like throwing Money out the window said Sid Taylor a former air Force analyst. The Only thing that scares the russians and everybody else is our missiles. That s about  the former bomber and missile tester said much of the Money that the United states has spent in the past 10 years has been spent getting ready for the last War. We re ready for world War ii. We re not ready for world War Iii Taylor said. Sen. Sam Nunn a a. And chairman of the Senate armed services committee said it was time each of the nato allies began Campha sizing its particular Mili tary strengths rather than trying to stage an entire symphony orchestra in each  under this Sce Nario the United states would have less emphasis on Forward deployed heavy units and More on rapid deployment strike forces capable of dealing with major regional conflicts or crises outside Europe. Nunn would also have the United states provide major air defences for Europe contingent on nato constructing adequate shelters and minimum essential facilities something he says has been promised for years but never delivered. More important the United states would continue to underwrite nato s nuclear deterrence. Powell  military must prepare for such emerging threats As terrorism Low intensity conflict and drug  these challenges and threats will require a continuous Infin Cmunt of our capability either to establish a military presence or to have an influence militarily in those areas of the world critical to our National inter ests the general said. Such thinking has led to a spate of brainstorm my in the Pentagon. Army sources for example said plan ners Are looking at converting the Force into a leaner highly Mobile fighting machine. But Spinney noted that the armed forces already have the Marine corps which is essentially an expeditionary Force of three Light divisions. And the army already has six expeditionary forces each one More lightly armoured than the Marine divisions he said. What arc we going to do with All these Light forces Spinney predicted that fiscal restraints in washing ton would Lead to a much smaller army with two heavy and four Light divisions. He suggested that the personnel cuts of 43,000 people in 1990 would be min Ute compared with the cuts ahead. Perhaps hundreds of thousands of troops will be pulled out of Europe and Asia he  air Force also finds itself facing a change in its Mission. It is designed to fight Russia Spinney said. So with the soviet threat reduced you be got a question of what you re going to do with the air  sources inside the air Force report concerns Over proposals from Cheney s office that would severely reduce the service s Active Force relying to a greater extent on the air Force Reserve and air National guard which Are generally made up of experienced pilots. Air Force leadership has rejected an internal Pentagon report showing that the average Domestic air Force base is operating at Only 50 percent of its capacity and that air bases overseas have even More wasted space. As the air Force debate continues publicly and be Hind Pentagon doors the Only thing that appears cer Tain is More personnel cuts. Equally unclear is the future of the Navy. Although it and the Marine corps will escape personnel cuts this year sources in Cheney s predict a blood Bath in the Pacific theater that will Lead to elimination of thou Sands of Navy positions in the Early 1990s. We must reduce the Cost of our Forward deploy ments worldwide including but not limited a cuts in our troops and dependents stationed abroad Nunn told a group of International military strategists in a recent speech. This is inevitable when you look at the United states budget when you look at the fiscal Situa Tion we Are in  Spinney said he thinks the 1990s will be marked by cutbacks in military operations and maintenance Sim Ilar to those made in the 1970s. However this time it will be coupled with major cuts in weapon procure ment. We need to Cut defense and we re going to have to change our Way of living said Taylor now a research director for the National taxpayers Union a group that works to hold Down taxes. Defense must be Cut drastically because it s economically non productive. And then your next prob Lem in America is going to be unemployment because our whole Economy is based on the defense expenditure right  in today s world Taylor said there s Only one answer we be got to Cut out the belligerency. In a sense of looking Back the whole cold War was a mis take. The russians and ourselves made a mistake. We spent ourselves into bankruptcy in the cold War. Ger Many will reunite. Japan is the All time economic Power. We won world War ii on the Battlefield and lost it at the Cash