Reagan Policy in Nicaragua

The Times editorial (June 13), “Cave-in on the Contras, “ is right on target.

There is very little to add here except that Nicaragua President Daniel Ortega’s trip to Moscow had nothing to do with the earlier defeat of President Reagan’s request for the $14-million aid package for the contras. The rationale here is that, because of our repeated rejection of any kind of trade relationship between our two countries, Nicaragua has seen fit to find help wherever available and Moscow has offered an alternative.

If we haven’t learned anything else over the years in our dealings with Latin American nations, we should at least know by now that our continued support of unpopular repressive regimes in this area has led to nowhere except to create a hostile reaction toward our own government.

It would seem to be the wiser course to offer assistance to these countries with the idea in mind of raising the standard of living for the people rather than spending millions to prop up corrupt governments designed for the benefit of the wealthy landowner. Maybe then we could see some lasting results.

FRANK M. STRICKLIN

Chatsworth