Evening star., 1924-08-07
RUSSIA WATCHING
SWEDISH REACTION
Breakup of English Confer
ence and Row With Germany
Brings Anxiety for Trade.

By Cable to The Star and Chicago Daily News.
STOCKHOLM, August 1.-THE break
ing off of negotiations between
England and Russia and the recent
Russo-German row lent interest to
the statement made by NJ. Ossirski,
the Soviet Minister to Sweden, on tho
possibilities of commercial relations
between Sweden and Russia.
According to NJ Ossinski, exports
from Sweden to Russia since 1921
which amounted to 37.S00,000 kroner
annually. In 1921 the total was
81, 200, 600; in 1922 it was S8.ooo,OOO.
and in 1923, 100000.
this year exports amounted to around
23,oO0,00o kroner. A large part OF
this consisted of railroad materials,
especially locomotives.
Russia has been doing a consld-
cradle export trade with many coun-
tries without importing anything
from them, so that We have ac-
cumulated large fund i'll foreign
exchange of between ESQ and 800 mil
lion gold rubles, which will be used
for imports Mr.. Ossinsh said.
Commercial relations between
Sweden and Russia are far from nor
NAL because Swedish business men
lack the necessary initiative. Big
banks refuse to lend their support to
any business ventures on a largo
scale. Business men are unwilling to
accept our conditions.
Resent DictatiOn.
THE Germans, before the recent
conflict, were not so slow and they
profited handsomely by their astute
business sense. Why does not Sweden
do the same thing? 1t is because it Is
difficult to get out of the habit of
debating to us conditions under
which commerce may be carried on
I am referring to the worldwide op-
position to Russian foreign COM
merce, as if we could not do as we
desired"
NJ. Ossinski then enumerated the
articles exported from Sweden, the
principal ones of which are farming
machinery, motors, echani-
cal instruments, wood pulp, paper and
ment He went on to explain the
merits of centralized commerce as
adopted by the Moscow government.
: Before the war" he said, Russian
grain, owing to its bad quality, could
only compete with Indian grain. The
inferior quality of the grain. however,
was not due to any negligence on the
part of the producers, but to the lack
OF such a centralized system as now
is in force. Under these conditions,
Ine gram pelnS IN the ndnQS OF a
semi-speculative organization which
sold and re-sold it, by the time it
reached the consumer abroad it was
in miserable condition.
Last season we exported three
million tons Of grain, and neither
Swedish nor German importers of our
rye have kicked yet. On the con-
trary, we have had nothing but praise
for It's good quality and our methods
Of selling 1t. Nor have we heard any
complaints about our deals in naphtha
and furs, our next largest item of
export
Our foreign commerce is run on
strictly business methods-that is to
say, we are as efficient as we can be,
we guarantee the quality of our ex-
ports and we keep prices on a level
with the world market While our
internal commercial organizations are
insecure and international credit is
still weak, and while our cooperative
system is still unstable, it is neces-
sary for Russia to stick for the pres
ent to the monopoly system After
that it may be possible 10 adopt other
methods"
- Copyright. 1a2AA