Vermont senator Leahy advocates SALT I I

WASHINGTON (A P ) The State Department, declaring that leftist guerrillas in El Salvador may launch a new offensive, announced Monday a *25 m illion increase in m ilitary aid and a 20-man increase in U.S. m ilitary tra in ing experts fo r that country. Spokesman W illiam Dyess said the aid w ill include additional he licop­ ters, vehicles, surveillance equip­ ment and small arms. The additional tra in ing personnel would raise to 54 the number o f Americans serving in m ilitaryrelated capacities in El Salvador. Dyess said the U.S. personnel w ill not go beyond the garrison area or take part in combat operations. "The insurgents are regrouping and massive quantities o f arms remain in the ir hands, c ithe r inside El Salvador o r they have reason to expect that additional arms are waiting to be smuggled in,” he said. "W e want to im prove as much as possible the governm ent’s ab ility to deal w ith this problem ." He said the * 10 m illion in m ilitary aid authorized by the Carter ad­ m inistration was not designed to cope w ith the level o f external arms assistance that now confronts the Salvadoran government. He said the new m ilita ry person­ nel being assigned to El Salvador w ill train the Salvadoran m ilitary and communications, intelligence, logis­ tics and other skills to stop in filtra ­ tion and to respond to terrorist attacks. The leftist rebels launched a major offensive on January 1 which the State Department said was carried out w ith the help o f at least 200 tons o f weaponry supplied by Vietnam, Ethiopia and other countries and shipped through Cuba and Nicaragua. Dyess said there is no conclusive evidence that a new offensive is planned but “ the best way to prevent one is to prepare for it." He said the Salvadoran m ilita ry per­ formed w e ll in january. The adm inistration also may in ­ crease the *63 m illion econom ic aid planned for the current fiscal year. The announcement on m ilita ry as­ sistance represents another escala­ tion in American m ilitary involvem ent in El Salvador. But the adm inistration has said there are no plans to send combat forces nor to establish a Vietnam-type involve­ ment there. Nonetheless, the steps taken thus far reflect the adm inistration’s deter­ m ination to ensure there is no Mar­ xist takeover in El Salvador. The Soviet-bloc countries are alleged to have delivered at least 200 tons o f an 800-ton com m itm ent to the leftist rebels. U.S. officials have said they believe the bu lk o f the un­ delivered equipment has arrived in Nicaragua for trans-shipment to El Salvador. Under American pressure, however, the Nicaraguan govern­ ment has pledged not to de liver any additional equipment to the rebels. More than 40 congressmen, meanwhile, said in a telegram to President Reagan that advisers are like ly to be killed, “ forcing the United States e ither in to another Vietnam or a hum iliating w ithdrawal.” The House members said Congress must be consulted under the War Powers Act “ since you are invo lv ing U.S. m ilita ry personnel in hostilities in El Salvador.”