Poland and gas pipeline are separate issues: Haig

Secretary of State Alexander Haig said he hopes future discussions on the Western stance over Poland will steer clear of a disputed $40 million Soviet-West European gas-pipeline project.

At issue is whether Washington will bar foreign subsidiaries of US companies from supplying equipment for the pipeline, a move favored by Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger. Mr. Haig has argued that this could damage allied unity.

Mr. Haig, interviewed by a West German television correspondent, said he doubted if members of the Reagan administration would cease to be concerned about the deal, but he said he also thought Americans understood that contracts had been signed and that the Western alliance was ''engaged in a very important question'' over Poland.