Lehman urges scrapping of SALT 1 agreement

Navy Secretary John Lehman Tuesday called for scrapping the SALT 1 agreement and said the new administration has broadened naval strategy to include defending US interests worldwide instead of focusing narrowly on protecting Europe. He told reporters the strategy change represented an "accurate consensus throughout the administration" based on his conversations with President Reagan and Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger. But he indicated Reagan has not made a formal decision.

The Secretary defined the new strategy as a "rejection" of the Carter administration's approach, which relied h eavily on defending central Europe from a Soviet attack.