House Units Eliminate USSR from Consideration for Special Credits

Irritated by Soviet behavior towards human rights issues and media freedom, two House committees have eliminated the Soviet Union from further consideration for special U.S. government credits to purchase American agricultural commodities.

By unanimous vote, the House International Relations Subcommittee on Economic Policy and Trade unanimously voted specifically to exclude the USSR from participation in any Commodity Credit Corporation program. Originally, under a bill sponsored by Rep. Paul Findley (R. III.), the Soviet Union would have been included in the benefits along with other “non-market economy (Communist) countries.”

The Jewish Telegraphic Agency was informed by Findley that this subcommittee last Tuesday explicitly ruled out the USSR. “Until the Soviet Union deals with human rights in an acceptable international manner there is not going to be any movement on this question, “he said.

The Findley bill and other proposed legislation were introduced in the House as means to circumvent in part the Jackson-Vanik Amendment that bars U.S. government credits to the Soviet Union until it alters its emigration policy. However, a year ago the late Sen. Hubert H. Humphrey (D. Minn.) and Findley proposed agricultural credits to include the USSR which, under an agreement signed with the U.S., Oct. 20, 1975 agreed to buy at least six million metric tons of grains from the U.S. annually for five years. The Soviet Union is estimated to be a billion dollar agricultural customer of the U.S.

“At that time, our relations with the Soviets were somewhat better than today and we had reason for some hope on the emigration question,” JTA was informed by a Findley aide. He pointed out that “In fact” the American Jewish Congress last June told the House International Relations Subcommittee that it supported the bill. Meanwhile the House Agricultural Committee in a separate measure had programs paralleling in some ways those in the Findley bill.