New-York tribune., 1919-11-23
ne Sore Spot of the Old World: The Near East
An American Mandate in
Armenia Is Fraugght With
Great Danger

flowing from temporary Venetian
occupation Of certain of the Egean
Islands. Yet even if decision could
be made Of the seacoast between the
Greeks, who have rights, and the
Italians, who have Anglo-French con-
sent and military strength, there
would remain the question Of the
hinterland, where some eight million
Turks constitute the bulk of the pop
ulation and retain measurable ca
pacity for fighting their enemies, IL
not for governing themselves.
A separation Of the Arab prov
inces from the Osmanli would be
relatively easy. Syria and Anatolia
have been more often separate than
united in history, but to parcel the
seafront Of Anatolia between the
Greek and the Italian, mutually hos
tile, would mean nothing more than
licensing a new war in which the
Turks would infallibly resist Ital-
ian and Greek invasion of the him
terland to the death, and the Greeks
and the Italians would inevitably
come to blows, since the Italians
have deliberately adopted the role
of oppressor Of the Greeks in
Europe, in the Egean Islands and
on the coast Of Asia Minor.
Nor Is It less certain that if the
United States should undertake the
mandate for Armenia, in addition to
conflict with French, Russian and
not impossibly British aspirations
we should find ourselves called upon
to protect the Armenian remnant
from the Turks and Kurds who TO-
day, as result Of the massacres
constitute an actual majority in the
whole Of Turkish Armenia.
The Hellenic World
There remains the question of
Constantinople. It is possible to
separate the city from all political
association with any European or
Asiatic state, to transform it into a
free city and to include within its
frontiers, on the lines of the old Dis
trict Of Columbia, the shores of the
Bosporus, the Dardanelles and the
Sea of Marmora. Given decent
government, the city could be made
one Of the most beautiful in the
world, and there are those who re-
gret that the Conference Of Paris
did not make the town the capital
of the league of nations and thus an
international town.
But for such considerable task
the United States could expect no
financial return, nor, what is far
worse. any certainty Of world ap-
plause. In the first place, once the
Turk were evicted, the largest ele-
ment in the population would be
Greek and this element would, be-
yond all doubt, with ever-growine
passion demand reunion with the
rest Of the Hellenic world. More
over, IN creating an internationalized
area about the straits we should de-
prlve Greece of many thousands of
Hellenes. The whole experiment
would be made at the expense Of the
Greek nationality. To be sure, even
the Greeks might be complaisant. if
they were satisfied that American
occupation, like the Allied occupa-
ton of Crete, was only temporary.
Yet the Cretan experiment was
hardly happy.
Aside from the Greek phase there
is always the Russian. Russia may
reintegrase; if she does, the old
longing for Constantinople will re-
turn and we shall find ourselves
standing in the pathway of Russian
ambition at Constantinople, and, if
we take the Armenian mandate, in
Asia Minor as we'll. Thus the
French and the Russians, as we'll as
the Greeks, are sure to resent our
presence. Nor will the Bulgarians.
who still cherish the dream of pos
sessing Byzantium, held for a thou
sand years, be more friendly. Oddly
enough, in proof Of this peril, at
least ore great Paris journal last
winter, when an American mandate
for Constantinople was suggested,
openly charged that American i'm
perialism was thus at last disclosed.
1t is argued in some quarters
that an American mandate would
be possible in the Near East only if
it were to include all of the old