The Daily Alaska empire., 1933-11-02

the result or mOQlflcatlOn Of American policy. Since the Wilson Administration in the Colby note of August 10, 1920 declared against the recognition of Russia, there has been within Russia a radical change of Communist policy. Pres ident Roosevelt is dealing with a different Russian government from the Russia government that President Wilson refused to rec ognize. The decisive difference has bsen brought about by the victory of Stalin and his doctrine of socialism in single country" over Trotzky and those who held the doctrine that communism can- not succeed in Russia unless there is world revolution.
 It is this change in Russian policy, now apparently establish ed and consolidated, that removes the only real obstacle there has ever been to the recognition of Russia. The problem of the debts and of damages for property con- fiscated has never been difficult one. The real obstacle has always been the doctrine of world revolu- ton held by the Third Internation- al of which the Russian Communist party is the chief component. Even those Americans who reject the idea that diplomatic recognition of a government implies moral ap- proval of that government have regarded Russia as a special case because they saw in the Third International an organized agen- cy, closely allied with the Soviet government, which proclaimed the intention of overthrowing Amer ican institutions This obstacle to recognition could not have been removed by mere formal promise of the Soviet government. It has been removed to the satisfaction of most close observers, by the long political struggle in Russia that has ended in the downfall of the world revolutionists and the practical repudiation of the Third International.
 Any one who wishes to acquaint himself with the main facts oi this internal Russian struggle can find them clearly set forth in Michael T. Florinsky's World Rev. olution and the U. s. s. R. It appears that Communist writers have been arguing for at least thirty years as to whether soclal- ism could or could not be estab- ushed in a single country in the midst of a capitalist world. MT. Florinsky shows that this issue be- came acute after the death oi Lenin in 1924, and that for some years it was fought out by the ad- herents of Stalin and of Trotzky. There is a whole library of con- troyersal literature. The thing was debated with the utmost vol ubulity, with hot passion, anc with tireless pedantry. But in the end Stalin won. In 1929 Trotzky went into exile, and his adherentS lost their influence. Since that time the energies of Stalin have been concentrated upon the up- building of Russia and the foreign policy of Litvinoff has become one of assuring peace on the from tiers and of expanding foreign trade.
 This does not mean that the Third International has been for mally renounced. But Mir. Flor insky points out "it has suffered complete eclipse" No Congress has been called since 1928. Its permanent organization continues to exist, but interest in it has fallen off. There is an executive committee. In the autumn of 1892 it held the twelfth plenary session and produced a series of Theses and Resolutions" on the support of world revolution. 'Izvestia,' , the official newspaper of the So- yiet government, did not even print them. "Pravda," the organ of the Communist party did pub fish them, oddly enough, in the form of a reprint from L'Human- ite.' the organ of the French Communist party From incl dents like these, and from more direct knowledge, close observers like MT. Walter Duranty and MT. Ralph w. Barnes and others have reached the conclusion that, while the Bolsheviks cannot formally re- nounce their revolutionary rhetor- ic. to the present rulers of Rus sia the doctrine of world revo- lution is a sentimental memory , a considerable embarrassment, and . in practice a dead letter. All this, however, would not be conclusive were it not for the evil
 dence of Russian pacifism to be found in Soviet foreign policy. 1, Russia has borrowed considerable : sums of money to finance imports. So far as I know there has never
 been any question raised as to her
 good faith in the fulfillment of contracts. But even more impress sive than that is the way in which
 Russia has cleaned m her rnla