In what will be the first post-coup assessment of the Soviet Union by Western leader, Prime Minister John Major flies to Moscow on Sunday for a brief visit.
As current chairman of the Group of Seven, the richest capitalist nations in the world, Major was expected to stick to its go-slow approach on Soviet assistance.Senior government sources said Major would tell President Mikhail Gorbachev, Russian President Boris Yeltsin, and leaders of other republics that substantial Western aid will depend on their own efforts to rescue the Soviet economy.
During his visit, a nine-hour stopover en route to Beijing and Hong Kong, Major will also reiterate the West's insistence that the Soviets significantly cut defense spending, said the sources. That now represents 25 percent of government's spending.
At their economic summit in July, the G-7 heads of state refused to provide massive aid to Gorba-chev, a position reaffirmed in last week's talks between Major and President Bush.