POLITICS / SOVIET UNION: Interview with Russian Ambassador on Soviet presence in Afghanistan

POLITICS / SOVIET UNION: Interview with Russian Ambassador on Soviet presence in Afghanistan; ENGLAND: London: INT Nikolai Lunkov (Russian Ambassador to Britain) interview SOT / - (Asked about Moscow Winter Olympics being way to contribute to international / standing) ...Olympic Games is one of the oldest, noblest...traditions in the world and / especially when we speak about this human contact and therefore this Winter Olympic / Games they confirm this / The Olympic Games bring people closer together / It is just / what / we want to have / ....I am deeply convinced about our Soviet position / Of course / we should do everything in our power to avoid this terrible prospect (referring to nuclear / war) and therefore we are standing firmly for this position of detente because you know / there is no reasonable alternative to this policy / If you go further it will mean only this / so-called co-destruction but we would like to hope that common sense will prevail / - (Asked if it will be the end of detente if USA do not go to Moscow for the Olympic / Games) ...Everybody should understand that the Americans try now to boycott the / Olympic Games but even the American sportsmen are against / - (Asked about speech by President Brezhnev on Soviet intervention in Afghanistan and / withdrawing Soviet troops) Leonid Brezhnev is crystal clear / I think it is a bi-lateral matter / between the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan and the Soviet Union because we / acted in full confirmity with our Soviet-Afghan treaty / - (Asked whether Soviet Union would like to be out of Afghanistan before the Moscow / Olympics) That is very theoretical / It depends first of all on Americans and their partners / If they take the necessary steps the problem will be settled very soon / TX'D:25.2.80/NAO: