European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 31, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday july 31,1991 authorized unofficial publication for. The . Armed forces 35c d 8693 a 71  be shut Down in Europe by Chuck Vinch Washington Bureau Washington a an additional 71 facilities in Europe will close and operations at eight others will be reduced in the latest round of overseas Force reductions Pentagon officials said tuesday. The actions which include the shutdown of Zaragoza a Are scheduled to be completed by the end of fiscal 1995, Pentagon spokesman Pete Williams said at a news briefing. They will affect More than 11,000 military personnel and More than 1,500 . Civilians. A we simply Don t need to have As Many forces in Europe As we Aid before All the dramatic changes that have taken place there a Williams said. A if you done to need the forces you Don t need the bases from which they  most of the facilities on the list Are in Germany. But Sites in Italy the Netherlands Spain Turkey and the United kingdom Are also included. The defense department has been criticized for painting its overseas base closings As More significant than they really Are since some Sites listed so far have included athletic Fields Barracks and even a Highway filling station run by the army and air Force Exchange service in Germany. As with those previous announcements the current list also includes relatively minor Sites such As housing annexes radio relay stations and waste treatment facilities. Doug Moore a spokesman for the . Air forces in Europe described the employment effects of closing most of the smaller air Force Sites on the new list As minimal a essentially to the Point of  but there Are some major bases on the list the seventh to be released since the first round of overseas base closings was announced in january 1990. Among them a in Spain the United states is vacating Zaragoza a and returning it to the Host nation by september 1992. Moore said tuesday night that closing Zaragoza see related Chart on Page 2 will remove 837 military and 74 . Civilian authorizations from Europe. About 123 Spanish National positions also Are affected Moore said. A the air Force will cease operations at Tempelhof Central Airport in Berlin by june 1993, affecting 1,078 military personnel and 37 . Civilian employees according to the Pentagon. Those numbers were disputed tuesday evening by the Safe spokesman. Moore cited figures from the commands manpower office of 582 military and 31 . Civilian slots to be Cut from Europe. He also noted that 723 German Job authorizations will be affected but those slots Are paid for by the German government. A in Goppinger Germany Cooke Barracks will close affecting 1,542 military personnel and 192 . Civilians while the closing of Wharton Barracks in Heilbronn Germany will affect 1,247 military personnel and 39 . Civilians. _ the announcement comes As lawmakers in the House Are about to debate a Resolution that would extend congressional oversight of the base closings process to include overseas facilities when the base closure and realignment commission next convenes in 1993. Currently that oversight is limited to Domestic installations. Williams said the timing of the latest announcement is not specifically linked to the imminent debate on that Resolution but he acknowledged that the Resolution was a Factor. A did we accelerate the process a bit to show our friends in Congress How much Progress we re making Quot Williams said. A that could have  noting the intense and often acrimonious debate in Congress Over Domestic base closings Williams said the Pentagon opposes extending congressional oversight of base closings to overseas facilities because a it would make it harder to close them Quot a Congress now has no role in the overseas base Clos see bases on Page 2 Yeltsin spurns meeting with Gorbachev Moscow up a the russian republics president Boris n. Yeltsin ignored an invitation by Mikhail s. Gorbachev to participate in a soviet Summit delegation tuesday saying a i done to fit into a voiceless mass  then in a direct broadside at the soviet president Yeltsin told Cable news network he would never run for the soviet presidency so that a emr. Gorbachev will not have a headache right  Yeltsin who skipped the meeting held by Gorbachev later met with president Bush separately for up to 45 minutes then explained to can that he Felt Gorbachev had tried to use him As a prop. A i believe that this situation dates Back to the tradition of the Era of stagnation when we had mass audiences a he said. A i done to fit into a voiceless mass audience. This voiceless audience can be created by other people a Yeltsin a skipping the Kremlin meeting brought out into the open again the rivalry and enmity Between the two leaders at the worst possible time for Gorbachev in the midst of the superpower Summit he has worked for six months to achieve Gorbachev a spokesman Vitaly Ignatenko tried to soft pedal Yeltsin a absence from the mornings Kremlin meetings saying a Yeltsin already had an appointment with  but Yeltsin was Quick to retort a i done to believe i am obliged to be in those  Bush emerged from the meeting with Yeltsin at the russian populists Kremlin office praising him. Quot Yeltsin a visit to the United states in june was a big hit and furthered relations not Only Between the soviet Union and the United states but Between the russian Republic and the United states a Bush said. A i want to congratulate or. See Yeltsin on Page 2 president Bush accompanied by soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev strolls through red Square during a Summit break tuesday