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PASTOR GENERAL'S REPORT, December 4, 1979
Page 8
over of the North could thus turn these workers into a potential Communist
fifth-colunm inside Saudi Arabia.
The red attack was stymied however, whereupon the U.S. even sent some
military supplies to fortify "our" Yemen's defenses. But now there are
disturbing reports that the supposedly pro-West regime of Ali Abdullah
Saleh is also on the take from Moscow. Mig-2ls were recently spotted
being unloaded in North Yemen.
Perhaps the most critical factor of all in the Yemeni equation is the
danger posed to Oman, the Arab state located to the immediate east of
South Yemen, which guards the entrance to the vital Strait of Hormuz.
The Hormuz "chokepoint" is the narrow 24-mile-wide waterway through which
most of the Free World's oil passes. Every seven minutes a tanker sails
through this vital gateway where 90 percent of Japan's requirements and
56 percent of Europe's needs pass.
Iran formerly was the "policeman" of the Persian Gulf-Strait of Hormuz
region, a role the Shah inherited from the British. Iran has since
dropped out of the picture. The Sultan of Oman is having to pick up the
slack, requesting military and financial aid from other Arab states. So
far, little has been forthcoming, though American warships have moved
closer in the Arabian sea area.
The Soviets realize how unprotected the Strait is, and also how vulnerable
Oman is. Iran's Shah had earlier helped the Sultan beat back a guerrilla
movement launched from South Yemen. Now, with the Shah gone and the
Soviets involved in South Yemen to an even greater degree, look for
another red-led attempt to "liberate" Oman--and strangle the West's oil
lifeline.
--Gene H. Hogberg, News Bureau