Weinberger's Office Delays SDI Report

Several prominent physicists yesterday charged Secretary of Defense Caspar W. Weinberger "38 with delaying for political reasons the release of their report that reaches negative conclusions about some key components in the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI).

The 400-page report, which was prepared by a committee of 18 prominent physicists co-chaired by Gade University Professor and Nobel Laureate Nicolaas Bloembergen, examines each of the directed energy weapons proposed for use in SDI. The Reagan Administration has touted the "Star Wars" system as a shield against nuclear weapons.

Committee members received word this week that the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) had judged several parts of the study "problematic and unpublishable" for security reasons, said several members who requested anonymity.

The physicists said this judgement by the OSD came only a week after the report was cleared for release by Department of Defense (DoD) security experts.

The members of committee also said Lt. Gen. James Abrahamson, who heads the SDI office, last week wrote a letter to Weinberger's office strongly urging. the report's release.

"We're sure the report is fine, it'sWeinberger's office that is holding it up becausethey don't want to further hurt their SDI plans atthis moment," said a committee member, who spokeon the condition of anonymity.

SDI officials denied that the report'spublication was being held up for politicalreasons.

"There's no truth to the idea that the reportis being held for political reasons," said SDIspokesman Major David Rigby. Rigby refused tocomment on who was currently reviewing the report.

"All I can say is that you will be seeing it inthe foreseeable future," said Rigby. Spokesmen forWeinberger had no comment on the matter.

Committee members had been given unprecedentedaccess to classified documents in the 18 monthsthey spent researching the directed energyweapons, such as lasers, proposed for use in SDI.As part of their agreement with Abrahamson, whoallowed them to examine the classified material,the physicists agreed to submit the report forreview by the DoD.

The report had been scheduled to be publishedin December, but the DoD said that several itemshad to be removed if it were to be declassified.

In January the scientists submitted a reportwhich they had rewritten to meet DoDdeclassification requirements but that reviseddocument has yet to be cleared. Scientists saidyesterday that Weinberger is holding uppublication because Congress is currently decidinghow much funding to allocate for SDI research.

"For them it wouldn't be such a good thing torelease right now because Congress is hacking awayat the SDI budget this very minute," said anothermember of the committee speaking on the conditionof anonymity.

Bloembergen is currently in Germany and couldnot be reached for comment. His fellow chairman,Bell Labs chief scientist Kumar Patel, did notreturn repeated phone calls yesterday