"We Have to Be Realistic"

By John Moody

Prior to his U.S. visit, Costa Rican President Oscar Arias Sanchez spoke to TIME Correspondent John Moody about the Sandinistas, the contras and his peace plan. Excerpts:

On whether his plan protects U.S. interests. We insist there will not be a lasting peace in the region if there is no democracy, as long as the people of Central America cannot freely choose their leaders. The only reason the contras are not included in the negotiations is that the Nicaraguan government would not accept this condition. We have to be realistic. If we want to achieve peace we cannot establish conditions that we know are unacceptable. It is possible that the peace proposal is not ideal for the contras. But they have agreed with it.

On the Sandinista regime. I think that, after more than 40 years of the Somoza dictatorship, the Nicaraguan people deserve something better than another dictatorship of the opposite extreme. In the long run, the consolidation of a Communist system in Nicaragua also becomes a threat to peace. I have no doubt that the Communist government of Nicaragua is not the best for my country. If there's one country the Sandinistas, given their expansionist ideology, must try to discredit as an oasis of democracy and peace, it is mine.

On Sandinista cooperation in peacemaking. If we arrive at an agreement and Nicaragua does not fulfill the obligations of the agreement, then it will put an end to this ambiguity which has permitted the Sandinistas to receive the support of both democratic and totalitarian governments.

On the U.S.-backed contra war. As long as the war goes on, it will be impossible to demand that the government in Nicaragua advance toward democracy and political pluralism. The contras are the excuse for everything: to eliminate all traces of liberty, to make the state more dictatorial and to justify the failure of a centralized economy.

On the war's effect on Costa Rica. We have 150,000 Nicaraguans living with us. We must provide them with jobs, education, health care. From that point of view, it's urgent to end this war.

On a Communist takeover in his country. The day will come when, thanks to the Sandinistas, it will be easier to find a giraffe, a hippopotamus or an elephant here than a member of the Costa Rican Communist Party.

On whether he would ever sanction a U.S. military intervention in Nicaragua. No. Just plain no.