Central America The Wright Stuff

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Ortega struck back in his address before the 31-nation OAS. He indulged in a hefty dose of eye-glazing anti-Reagan rhetoric, charging that the President was reneging on a promise made in the Reagan-Wright plan to open a "direct dialogue, government to government," once the Sandinistas initiated contacts with the the contra leadership. In fact, only an early draft called for bilateral negotiations; the final version insisted on regional talks.

Given the bad feelings between Reagan and Ortega, easy concessions are not expected. "These people are in a war of propaganda," says a Honduran , official. "Neither side wants to be the one to give in." Still, the debate over bilateral or multilateral talks is more than mere posturing. The Sandinistas, who know that renewed bilateral talks will lend their regime prestige, argue that until the U.S. forthrightly announces its support for the Guatemala plan, it is not entitled to participate in regional negotiations. "Why should we let Reagan take part?" asks Nicaragua's Foreign Minister Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann. "He doesn't welcome us to sit in on his talks when he meets with other nations."

Washington's position reflects the anxiety of its allies in the region. The leaders of El Salvador and Honduras, for example, fear that their concerns will be neglected if they are excluded from the negotiations. "We've been burned before," said a Honduran official, alluding to the Reagan-Wright plan, which was unveiled without consulting the allies. Last week State Department officials continued to insist publicly that any U.S. talks with Nicaragua must include the other Central American countries. But privately they said Shultz was pushing Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Costa Rica to back bilateral talks.

Once Sandinista-contra talks get under way, they could stumble on any number of points. Ortega has stated plainly that there will be no political negotiations. But the contras are already hinting at some measure of power sharing. Among the demands they floated last week: that the Sandinistas should disband their nine-member directorate, and that the contras should be granted control of the territory they now hold. The contras still hope to negotiate their demands face to face with the Sandinistas rather than through an intermediary. Yet as of last week that scenario looked unlikely. When a Sandinista group ran into Contra Leader Calero at a Washington reception, they refused to shake his outstretched hand, then walked out of the room even before the hors d'oeuvres were served.