Evening star., 1938-11-01
Bu|garo-Yugos|av
Amity 10 Aim
AT German Trade
Nations Reuffirm Policy
To Offset Economic
Future Supremacy
By NJ. w. FODOR.

ZURICH, Nov. l &C. D. N).-Bul-
garia and Yugoslavia, one reduced
and the other enlarged by the post
war settlement, have reaffirmed
their policy Of mutual friendship to
offset possible revisionist tendencies
and have laid the groundwork for
reaction to German economic su-
premacy in the Balkans.
That is the portent of Yesterdays
conference, in the Serb city of Nish,
between Premier George Kiosseiv-
anov of Bulgaria and Premier Milan
Stoyadinovitch of Yugoslavia, who
discussed common policy in the
light Of post-Munich developments.
Although the two statesmen had
planned to meet some time ago, in
ternational tension intervened and
yesterdays get-together, many be-
lieve, was precipitated by the recent
assassination of Gen. Ivan Peiev,
Bulgar chief of staff. Gen. Peiev's
murder created fear in Belgrade, at
the time. that important irredentist
undercurrents had again appeared
in Bulgarian politics, chiefly among
Macedonian elements.
Iron Hand Promised.
Kiosseivanov assured Stoyadino-
witch that Macedonian machina-
tions we're being handled with an
iron hand and that no clouds that
might obstruct the development of
the Bulgaro- Yugoslav friendship
would be tolerated in the land. An
official communique, issued imme-
diately after the conversations en-
phasized that the two premiers were
united in a wish to promote eco
nomic cooperation between their
two countries.
Yugoslavia and Bulgaria are two
nations with whom German trade
has increased by leaps and bounds
in recent months and it is believed
certain that both premiers are per-
turbed despite their unquestionable
pro-German activities, as they fear
the potentialities involved. AS an
aftermath of the Austrian anschluss
and German absorption of Sudeten-
land, Bulgaria's exports to Germany
have now reached virtually three
quarters of its total shipments
abroad, while Yugoslavia's exports
to the Reich, with only proportion
of 2l.7 per cent last year, rose to
SO per cent of total exports last
August.
Other countries, notably Rumania
and Greece, are even more con-
cerned by this German trade ex-
pansion. Rumania still cherishes a
hope that Great Britain will not
allow Bucharest's trade to slip en-
tirely into German hands and re-
port that the British government
has bought 100000 tons of Rumanian
wheat toward its wartime stock
gratifles Bucharest. This purchase
is independent of the 100000 tons
which a British firm bought earlier
in the year and of which only rela-
lively small quantities were placed
on the market.
King to Discuss Economics.
Furthermore, King Carols visit
to London this month will be de-
voted primarily to economic ques-
tions.
George II of Greece, who is now
in the British capital, will also un-
doubtedly raise the question of eco
nomics. Greece accepted a German
armament loan of $4,000, 900 last
year, but when war clouds accumu-
lated recently, Greece sided with
England. Thus the Wirtschafts-
ring, a German economic weekly, re-
fers to the important share of Ger.
man foreign trade in Greece's eco
nomic life and concludes that it is
preposterous that this Balkan coun-
try should think that q German
loan is welcome in peacetime when,
in time Of crisis, it tries to side with
Germany's adversaries.
(copyrisht, 1889