Although American foreign aid has been "a great success," in several countries military grants have been wasted, according to John Kenneth Galbraith, professor of Economics. During yesterday's WGBH-TV program "Foreign Aid and Economic Policy," Galbraith also charged that the United States has damaged its reputation by associating with totalitarian rulers in Latin America.

Birth control and the government's dollar loss were among the other topics Galbraith considered. Although population control is already vital to the economic development of many countries and may some day be necessary in the United States, he said , the government should keep the issue entirely out of foreign aid discussion.

Because birth control programs are inexpensive, he explained, other countries should be able to finance their own research. Furthermore, he maintained, since Americans themselves are unable to agree on birth control, they are not ready to express a national policy on it.

Galbraith praised the results of the American aid policy in Europe, but also blamed that policy indirectly for the government's current dollar loss. So much attention has been devoted to European economics, he explained, that the American financial situation has been somewhat neglected.