El Salvador, Honduras OK border pact, renewed ties

El Salvador and Honduras have reached agreement on a treaty to settle a longstanding border dispute and restore diplomatic relations between the two countries. The agreement is expected to allow more effective control of border areas that have been used by left-wing guerrillas fighting against the civilian-military junta governing El Salvador. The draft treaty, worked out through the mediation of Jose Luis Bustamante y Rivero, former President of PEru , is to be signed in Lima on Oct. 30. US officials see it as a major step toward reviving the Central American Common Market, which was established in 1962 but declined in 1969 after hostilities broke out between the two countries.