USSR-POLAND: POSSIBLE SOVIET ECONOMIC PRESSURE

Created: 9/23/1981

OCR scan of the original document, errors are possible

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USSR-POLANDi Possible Soviet Economic Pressure

Moscow may be attmnpting for, the first time to link the level of future aid to Poland to Uareaw'e willingness to oat against Solidarity. 4mmmt

peech yesterday, Polish Politburo eeeber Olszewski alluded to possible Soviet economic pressure, remarking that continued anti-Sovietisa might prompt Moscow to reduce its aid by insisting that Soviet-Polish trade be balanced. Soviet Deputy Premiar Baybakovmet with Premier Jaruzelski in Warsaw to initiate talks on bilateral tradend the Polishgency indicated Poland had asked the Soviets to permit0 million trade deficit, fames*

"Polish officials last week hinted that unpublished portions of the Soviet letter ofeptemberconomic/reprisals If "anti-Soviet" activity wereuppressed, seeet

Regardless of the message Moscow is attempting to convey, Warsaw may invoke the danger of economic repriaels in the effort to induce Solidarity to moderate its stance.

a threat might carry particular weight with those

. activists in Solidarity who believe that additional de-stabilizatlon would aerve Soviet ends. fwjBem

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Government and Union Plexlbllity

Several signs of moderation emerged from both sides

yesterday, despite continuingnion leaders f'were told on Monday that the government will not bring

its controversial self-management billote in'parliament until after the second session of Solidarity's 'congress. The union, inompromisehile giving workers the right to'hire managers, appar-

would allow the government to challengein the courts.

Solidarity's leadership, according to several union sources, has decided to avoid any polemic with the regime until after the final session of its congress sets union

for Relej Date.

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policy. In Jine with this decision, the nationalwhich met in Gdansk yesterday, did not issue any rejoinders to the various Soviet and regime criticisms over the last week. how of restraint appears to be an important victory for the moderates.

The union, however, is letting local chapters carry the brunt of the propaganda exchange. Solidarity's news service is carrying messages from union members inous factories responding heatedly to the Soviet message and the'strcara of letters from Soviet workers, BmaB>

The government, meanwhile, la responding to Moscow's demand that it move against instigators of'acts. The police yesterday-arrested two local Solidarity activists in different parts of the country andhem with inciting the populace against Poland's alliance with the USSR. The actions probably will provoke an angry response from some union members, but thereaction may be restrained out of an awareness of the Soviet pressures on the regime.

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