European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 15, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Tuesday february 15, 1994 the stars and stripes Page 5 Clinton hails economic gains he claims his policy has lifted output Cut deficit a a it  / _ -. Washington a president Clinton proclaimed to Congress on Mon Day that his administration had put the country on a path of rising output in creasing employment and falling  the administration s first annual eco nomic report stood in marked contrast to the previous 12 Reagan and Bush documents that had touted the Job producing benefits of Low taxes and lessening government interference in the free mar Ket. Clinton praised his $500 billion deficit reduction plan half of which comes from raising taxes and argued that govern ment has a role in boosting . Productivity. For too Long and in too Many ways our nation has been Drifting Clinton said in a message accompanying the 398 Page report. For 12 years a policy of trickle Down economics built a false Prosperity on a Mountain of Federal debt. Clinton said his administration had been Able to put the country on a differ ent economic course in just one year that had replaced Drift and gridlock with re Newal and  while some economists give the Feder Al Reserve most of the credit the presi Dent said his deficit reduction plan has been the principal Factor in the dramatic decline in Long term interest  lower interest rates have sparked a investment driven economic expansion that has created More private sector jobs in the past year than were created during the entire Bush administration the re port said. As a result of our efforts the econ omy now is on a path of rising output in creasing employment and falling deficits the president said. With continued deficit reduction More Public investment a reformed health care system increased exports and a reinvented government we can create the foundations for an even More prosperous America he said. Briefing reporters on the report Laura Andrea Tyson the president s chief economic adviser said growth of out put increased steadily Over the course of1991 and we believe the expansion will continue. Consumer spending should re main healthy because of continued gains in employment and output. Investment spending should remain Strong because of Low Long term interest rates and increasing Levels of demand she said. The economic report expanded on the projected . Growth 1995 economic growth inflation Bourc National association of business economists is administration s reasoning behind its eco nomic forecast which was unveiled when the president sent his $1.52 trillion spending plan to Congress a week ago. The administration is predicting that the Economy will grow slightly faster this year than last with the Gross Domestic product expanding at an annual rate of 3 percent a forecast in line with those of private economists. Ruling delayed on contaminated boxes byed Reavis staff writer a German judge has asked for More information before ruling on a lawsuit filed by civilian workers at two army training centers who Are seeking Hazard pay for handling chemically treated am munition boxes. The court postponed the Case while the Union representing workers from the Grafe Wohr and Vilseck training centers gathers More detailed information said a spokesman with 7th army training come in Vilseck. A spokesman for the German Public service transport and traffic Union or Oto said monday that the Union wants a 10 percent pay increase for workers who came into Contact with ammunition boxes treated with pentachlorophenol a potentially lethal substance used As a Wood preservative. The Union which represents 2 million workers in Germany and nearly 4,000 in the Grafe Wohr area initiated the suit for 50 civilians who work for the army. On Friday the labor court in Amberg said they wanted to see More detailed evidence on the Case before making a Deci Sion said the Union spokesman. The army was represented at the court hearing by the Niernberg Branch of the German finance ministry. Local environmentalists have been at Odds with the army for months about the dangers of he ammunition boxes treated with pentachlorophenol. The army claims the boxes when properly handled Are not dangerous. When burned however the substance gives off dioxin a known cancer causing agent. Environmentalists claim the contaminated boxes have caused an unusual number of cancer deaths among workers Over the years and have polluted the ground water. However they have yet to produce Concrete evidence backing their claims. We expect to have a new labor court Date set sometime late in March after a new judge reviews the evidence we presented the Union spokesman said. You re not so Tough Mcguff is div Didio four year old Kimberly Little has a touch for making friends especially with an Over grown dog named Mcguff. The crime fighting canine assigned to the 48th Security police so at Raf Lakenheath England was. At a seminar monday that was also at tended by Kimberly and her parents Regina and senior airman Glenn Little. . Navy rescues Crew of ship adrift with 700 sheep Manama Bahrain a a . Navy frigate has rescued a 23 member Crew from an Indian livestock vessel that had been adrift for 15 Days on the arabian sea the Navy said monday. The 90-foot Shahe Al Hasam was sailing from Somalia to Dubai with 700 sheep aboard when it experienced engine trouble Accord ing to a statement from the Navy. On saturday a helicopter from the . Frigate Curtis spotted the troubled vessel about 100 Miles Southeast of Oman and the frigate towed the ship to Shore. The Crew of 17 indians and six somalis were Given food and water which had begun to run scarce the statement said. The Navy is deployed in the per Sian Gulf to support . Allies and take part in enforcing . Sanctions against Iraq. The Curtis Home port is Yoko Suka Japan. 3rd inf general travels to russian army site Wurzburg Germany is the commander of the 3rd inf div left for Russia on sunday to Complete plans for a combined training operation with a rus Sian mechanized infantry division in july. Maj. Gen. Leonard d. Holder or. Will meet with his russian counterpart Gen. Maj. Anatoliy Sid Yakin commander of the 27th guards motorized Rifle div at the russian unit s Headquarters in to Skoye said capt. Kirk Frady 3rd inf div spokesman. The 27th div is located in the Volga military District he said. To Skoye is West of the ural mountains and just North of the russian Border with Kazakhstan. Six members of Holder s staff accompanied him to the meetings Frady said. Sid Yakin and his staff Are expected to visit Wurzburg in March. About 200 soldiers from the 3rd inf div s 1st in 15th inf regt in Schwein Furt will travel to Russia for the combined peacekeeping exercise Frady said the location and dates of the event have not been selected. Both divisions Are about the same size and Field similar equipment Frady said. The exercise is part of a military cooperation agreement signed aug. 8 by for Mer Secretary of defense Les Aspin and russian defense minister Pavel Gra Chev Frady said. The defense agreement is a product of meetings held during the Spring of 1993 Between president Clinton and russian president Boris n. Yeltsin in Vancouver British Columbia. Bulgaria Latvia join nato partnership Brussels Belgium a Bulgari an president Zhenyu Zhelev signed up monday for nato s new partnership program for Eastern Europe saying closer links with the Western military Alli Ance would help his country play a stabilizing role in the Balkans. Latvia s prime minister Valdis Birkavs also enrolled his country in partnership for peace. They bring to nine the number of for Mer Warsaw pact nations to sign the pro Gram since it was approved last month by president Clinton and other leaders of the North Atlantic treaty organization. The partnership will allow the East europeans to join the Alliance in military exercises peacekeeping and other activities. They also will be Able to open delegations at nato Headquarters. But the program stops Well Short of meeting requests of Many former Warsaw pact nations for full membership in the 16-nation nato. Russia has opposed expanding Alliance membership. Zhelev like others who have signed the partnership agreement said he hoped it would Lead to eventual membership. Bulgaria he said could form a Trian Gle of stability in the Balkans with nato members Greece and Turkey. Russia also has been invited to sign a partnership Deal but has so far not accepted. A nato delegation is scheduled to visit Moscow soon to give More details about the program. Other nations that have signed up so far Are Poland Ukraine Slovakia Roma Nia Lithuania Estonia and Hungary. Al Bania and the czech Republic Are expected to do so soon