European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 27, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Tuesday july 27, 1993 the stars and stripes Page 3 of Don t shortchange nato general says by Rosemary Sawyer Brussels Bureau Casteau Belgium nato s to commander in Europe said monday that the . Contribution to the nato infrastructure fund is As important to the Alliance s health As the continued station ing of its troops overseas. Just because the cold War has ended does t mean that the requirement for infrastructure has ended said . Army Gen. John , supreme Allied com Mander Europe. After All infrastructure is not just buildings or bunk ers it is really the program where we collectively fund those things wended for War  on Friday the Senate armed service committee gave Shalikashvil and others cause for optimism by approving the entire $240 million contribution requested by the Clinton administration. However that sum must meet the approx Shalikashvil Val of the Senate appropriations commit tee. It could follow the Lead of its House counterpart which already voted to slash$100 million from the fiscal 1994 request. Last year Congress approved just $61million of a $221 million administration re quest in an attempt to push . Allies int sharing More of the Cost of Europe s de sense. It is terribly important to the health of the Alliance that we continue to sup port the infrastructure program just a important As it is that we continue to sup port the Forward stationing of  Here Shalikashvil said. The Alliance must equip itself for its Post cold War Mission he said which includes Mobile Headquarters capability where before we relied on  intelligence gathering also has new requirements said the army general who also commands . Forces in Europe. It s one thing when you Are trying to identify battalions of Armor formations coming at you As opposed to trying to Fig ure who the warlord is around the Bend of the  although the United states bears about one fourth of nato s infrastructure budget the tentative . Contribution was not Shalikashvil s Only concern. He said he was very worried that allies also trying to Cut defense spending would pull Back from their commitments. Despite the budgetary restrictions being experienced by the . Military in Europe Shalikashvil said his top priority was ensuring that service members and their families enjoy a High Standard of living. Readiness in t just training he  in t just maintenance of equipment. Readiness is also Quality of life and in this period of draw Down we have to put the highest priority on it. And Quality lifestyle can Only be maintained it we Channel the resources into that area he said. Shalikashvil Praise the example of army officials who made the hard Choice to sink millions of dollars of operation and maintenance funds into improving soldiers Barracks in Europe. Concerning the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina Shalikashvil said nato has quickly and consistently complied with All . Requests for sup port of its Security Council resolutions As evidenced again by the Allied planes added to operation deny flight. The operation is designed to enforce the United nations no Fly zone Over Bosnia. Following sunday s shelling of a .base in the bosnian capital of Sarajevo Shalikashvil said he would again Tell the commander of the . Protection Force that nato is ready to begin providing air support for ground troops. I want him to know that As soon As he wishes we Are prepared to give him the assistance. It s Tough enough As it is for him without what appears to be a Clear Cut attack on .  former Yugoslavia is not the sole Hotshot demanding the world s watchful Eye. We must not become so focused on Bosnia that our attention gets diverted and our energies get diverted from being involved in a proactive and preventive pro Gram that helps us keep the next crisis spot from flaring up into a crisis like Bosnia has he said. No one can predict where the next Flash Point will be but i think it would take an awful Optimist to believe that Bosnia s going to be the last  in the face of criticism that the Mili tary has failed to act sufficiently in bos Nia Shalikashvil pointed to numerous operations from delivering humanitarian Aid to patrolling the sea and sky. There s some 23,000 military personnel of All nations in former Yugoslavia trying to Deal with the crisis he said. So can we setback and be satisfied that everything pos sible is being done Heck no. One american will stay with her memories by de Ream staff writer Frankfurt Germany few people will be affected by the american military withdrawal from Frankfurt like Leslie Spear. Spear a desk clerk at the military run american arms hotel was born in the army s Hospital in Frankfurt 45 years  received her education from Nursery to High school in the military Community and has worked i Frankfurt except for a Brief hiatus in England Ever since. The Prospect that in a few years she will be unable to walk by her old school or the places where she played shopped and worked saddens her. The command Here tells us we have to live with the fact that Frankfurt is closing Down but they can know what it will mean to me. Spear said fighting Back  vividly remembers when she could View the War ravaged City from inside the Abrams Complex. My father and my sister Gayle lived in a House requisitioned by the military Spear said. We had a maid a Butler a Cook and a  Dollar in those Days fetched 4.2 Marks. The average German monthly salary 40 years ago was 400  family was the very first to move into the Platten housing area. We were called occupational kids in those Days and Frankfurt was called Frank Furt Post. For entertainment we had the Idle hour movie House a teen club and Kurt s Gasthaus in the Dornbusch Section of town not far from Platten and of course Sachsenhause for fun. I can remember falling Over a lot of rubble. My parents were strict about my being Home by 10 in the  Spear recalls the excitement when the Frankfurt commissary opened in the shopping area and the Days when the nearby intersection was called wac Circle because the Barracks for the women s army corps was located  said her father took her to the United states every two years to visit California and new  High school i attended cosmetology courses in London for a few months then worked a several jobs Here in Frankfurt she said. I had a car Accident in Frankfurt which left me partially handicapped. I did red Cross Volunteer work at the 97th general Hospital for several years and eve worked in a German  her late father George Spear worked with the army corps of engineers in Frankfurt served in the is Dave Casey Leslie Spear born and bred in Frankfurt. Navy and worked for the state department. Her father s photo album is full of mementos from his career. Among them Are a photograph of Averell Harriman his Boss when he worked at the . Embassy in Moscow. And there s a treasured photograph he took of president Franklin d. Roosevelt an Winston Churchill flanked by Madame and Generalis Simo Chiang Kai Shek. Spear s father received a number of citations from dignitaries including president Truman. Spear is especially proud of one such Honor bestowed on him by German and american officials for his role in the Ber Lin Airlift. His role involved what authorities dubbed the Ber Lin Kinder lift which brought at least 8,000 refugee and underprivileged children from the divided City lowest Germany for vacations Spear who Speaks and writes German said she will remain in Germany despite the exodus of . Forces. Like a John Kennedy in Berlin Ich bin Ein Frankfurter like nobody strike by truckers causes run on Gas by Marian Hamilton Mediterranean Bureau Naples Italy a truckers strike has left millions of Drivers idling in line As motorists try to fill up before supplies run out. The strike started saturday night and May last up to two weeks according to police and news reports. Italian news reports said car owners need not panic because Only trucks belonging to uni trans a truckers Union Are not reaching their destinations. Large fuel companies such As Esso and Agio pm ploy their own trucks and Drivers and Are still providing their stations with Gas and kerosene used by Many moped and motorcycle owners. Nonetheless Drivers throughout Italy Are stockpiling gasoline and Many stations have exhausted their sup plies. In addition italian police Are escorting Gas truck Drivers on Supply routes. According to Carlo Ramizi of the Naples finance police Force the escorts Are meant to prevent attempts to Stop Union members from interfering with nonunion deliveries and possible hijackings. Ramizi said no attempts have been made yet to Stop gasoline deliveries. Contributing to this report staff writer sue Palumbo in Naples f-16 with problem diverts to Croatia Aviano a Italy is an f-16 fighting fal con has returned to Aviano a Italy after diverting to an Airfield in Croatia for repairs. The f-16 developed Hydraulic problems Friday night while flying Over Bosnia and Herzegovina in support of operation deny flight and was forced to divert to an Airfield at split on the Adriatic coast said . Air Force airman 1st class Christopher Thomas a spokes Man at the Aviano Public affairs office. At split British . Peacekeepers stationed in the area provided Security for the f-16 belonging to the 23rd fighter so and deployed to Aviano from Spang Dahlem a Germany. Meanwhile a . Navy c-12 aircraft transported a maintenance team from Aviano to determine the cause of the problem Thomas said monday. A second group of maintenance people with repair equipment departed from Aviano for split aboard a . Army ch-47 helicopter assigned to cd e of the 502nd aviation regt at Aviano. Because of darkness the aircraft could not be re paired until saturday morning. It returned to Aviano later that Day Thomas said