Soviets shun missile task

TEL AVIV The Soviet military advisers who set up and mannedLibya's SAM-5 and other surface-to-air missile batteries were orderedto let Libyan personnel replace them shortly before the U.S. airstrikes, military sources here said yesterday.

These sources estimate that several thousand Soviets are basedin Libya. However, they doubt the Russians would urge Libyan leaderMoammar Khadafy to escalate his belligerence toward the UnitedStates.

On the contrary, the sources said, the Soviet role in Libya hasbeen "to moderate" the policies and tactics of Khadafy.

The sources expect Khadafy to refrain from sponsoring terroristattacks on U.S. targets in favor of Jewish or Israeli ones in WesternEurope.