News In Brief

9 tons of 'diplomatic baggage' escorted back to East bloc

West German police escorted a Soviet truck to the East German border Monday, ending a 10-day standoff over the truck's nine-ton cargo which the Soviets claimed was ''diplomatic baggage.''

The truck first came under suspicion in Switzerland, where authorities insisted that nine tons was too big a ''diplomatic bag'' to go unchallenged. West German officials halted it at the East German border, and the Soviets agreed to have the truck's contents inspected at the Soviet Embassy. But the officials did not open the 207 containers in the truck, and there was no independent verification of their contents, government spokesman Peter Bonisch said. The Soviets claimed it contained radio, electrical, and other routine equipment.

Its two-man crew will have driven more than 4,000 miles in a frustrating round trip from Moscow to Geneva.