U.S. Responds Sharply to New Zealand

WASHINGTON —  The Reagan Administration reacted sharply Monday to the New Zealand government’s second refusal to permit a U.S. warship to visit New Zealand, and the prime minister of Australia predicted that the incident will lead to the cancellation of upcoming naval maneuvers in the South Pacific.

Hinting at U.S. reprisals, State Department spokesman Bernard Kalb said “we deeply regret” the denial of access for the destroyer Buchanan, scheduled to take part in the naval exercises off Australia next month.

And Defense Secretary Caspar W. Weinberger called the action “a serious attack” on the ANZUS (Australia, New Zealand, United States) alliance that has existed since World War II.

“At the moment, they are only following a course which can be of great harm to themselves,” Weinberger said in an appearance before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

New Zealand Prime Minister David Lange has vowed to prohibit vessels that are nuclear-powered or capable of carrying nuclear arms from visiting his nation’s ports. His Labor Party government won election July 14 on a platform that included the ban on nuclear ships.

Last week, Lange turned down an initial bid by the United States to let the destroyer make a port call. On Sunday, after Washington repeated the request, he again refused.

Kalb said Monday that the ship is “conventionally powered,” but he followed longstanding U.S. policy in declining to say whether it carries nuclear weapons.

The dispute threatens to divide the alliance, and Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke said in Brussels late Monday that the joint “Sea Eagle” naval exercises, scheduled for March, are about to be canceled.

“There is probably an announcement being made now about the cancellation of the exercises that were to have taken place,” he said. “. . . It is a matter between us and the U.S. about what will replace those exercises.”

(The British news agency Reuters quoted an unnamed U.S. official in Washington on Monday as confirming that the exercises have been canceled.)

Hawke, scheduled to arrive in Washington today for a meeting with President Reagan, has already publicly taken issue with Lange over the policy. Hawke has warned Lange that the ANZUS treaty cannot have different applications for different members and noted that Australia has allowed U.S. naval visits without restriction.

Kalb warned: “The denial of port access is a matter of grave concern, which goes to the heart of our mutual obligations as allies. Accordingly, we are considering the implications for our overall cooperation with New Zealand, under ANZUS, including the question of our participation in military exercises. Some decisions are expected soon--others may take longer to examine.”

Lange, at a news conference in Wellington Sunday, denied that the alliance is “currently threatened” by his action. In a radio interview Monday, though, he said he would not reverse his stand even if it were threatened.