Turmoil In Romania : U.S. Preparing to Send Supplies When Fighting Eases

WASHINGTON —  The United States is preparing shipments of medical and other relief supplies for victims of the violence in Romania but cannot deliver them until heavy fighting in the capital of Bucharest subsides, U.S. officials said Sunday.

So far, $25,000 in contingency funds has been released by Ambassador Alan Green Jr. for the purchase of medical supplies on the local market, said Michael Hornblow, an official of the U.S. State Department Romania task force. Hornblow said more extensive aid will be sent when the amount needed can be determined and transportation routes reopen.

“We want to be helpful but we want to be sure our help goes to the right people,” he said.

Fighting continued to rage Sunday between security forces loyal to ousted dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and troops backing protesting reformers. Thousands have been reported killed or injured.

Hornblow said Soviet and French planes have reached the Bucharest airport with medical supplies but have been unable to unload them because of the chaotic conditions.

The Red Cross, which is also attempting to provide emergency aid, said some supplies from East and West European nations are moving into Romania by land routes. The Geneva-based International Red Cross has established logistical bases in Budapest, Hungary, and Varna, Bulgaria, to coordinate relief work.

“This is one of the most difficult operations I’ve seen,” said Ann Stingle, an American Red Cross spokeswoman. “It’s not just a question of getting supplies and medical teams where they’re needed--they have to fight their way in.”

Stingle said two planes carrying an eight-member medical team landed in Bucharest on Friday and began treating wounded at the airport. But the team has been unable to leave the immediate area.

Another team is attempting to drive to Bucharest by road from Varna.

Rep. Ted Weiss (D-N.Y.), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said the United States should try to get aid to the country even if it is not clear which side will win control.

“There are village governments, local governments, there are county governments, there are levels of government and there are areas which are clearly no longer under the control of the Ceausescu government,” he said in a television interview. “It seems to me that what it takes is the will and the determination to be of assistance without getting involved on a military basis. That’s really the thing to avoid at this point.”