ON A CLEAR DAY you can s

NATO TOLD

Strengthen defense
against the Soviets

WASHINGTON (UPI) - The
United States has urged its
West European allies to
strengthen their own
defenses while America
concentrates on the Soviet
threat in the Persian Gulf
area, the Pentagon disclosed
Tuesday.

The administration's
message was delivered to
NATO members in Brussels
by Robert Komer, un-
dersecretary of defense for
policy. Komer is in the
Belgian capital to prepare
for a May meeting of North
Atlantic Treaty Organization
defense ministers.

The U.S. message to
NATO underlines President
Carter’s pleas to the allies to
support his sanctions against
Iran and boycott the
Moscow Summer Olympics
as a protest against the
Soviet invasion of
Afghanistan.

Pentagon spokesman
Thomas Ross said Komer
urged the allies to put more
effort into reserve
mobilization planning,
stockpiling sufficient war
supplies, improving airlift

defense, and generally
improving NATO's existing
facilities.

However, the spokesman
said the United States is “not
in any way” urging NATO to
expand its defense area to
include the Persian Gulf.

“We are basically asking
that NATO do more. We
would not do less,” he said.

Ross said the United
States may find it necessary
to earmark some U.S.
troops, now designated for
NATO contingencies, for
possible Middle East duty.

The NATO allies adopted
a long term defense program

in 1978, estimated to cost

about $80 billion, to improve
joint defenses over the next
10 years.

However, political
problems as well as rampant
inflation have cut into the
allies’ success in boosting
their annual defense budgets
by 3 per cent a year.

“We are not reducing our
efforts,” the Pentagon
spokesman said.

“But we will have to
project a substantial force to
the Persian Gulf and the
NATO allies are being asked

ee forever when driving the switchback up to Cypress Park. (Ells

TS Fara nea a ad a TE a Rok art TEN

No item is too sm,'li to be
scrutinized by a municipal
council and Monday night
North Vancouver City
council took time to discuss
a basketball hoop.

The hoop which is located
at the end of a dead end lane
north of the 300 block East
ist Street was the subject of
an engineer's report
presented to council.

The hoop was erected as
part of a City policy to try
and turn dead end lanes into
recreational space.

City engineer Tom Scott
said that apart from two
telephone calls abjecting to
the hoop there has been no

SPECIAL
PURCHASE PRICE

Basketball
oop. can stay

other public reaction
received.

Aldermen Gary Payne and
Stella Jo Dean felt that the
hoop meant a lot to kids in
the area and council was
content to leave it there.

capabilities and maritime to pick up the slack.”

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