Evening star., 1939-03-18
Nazis Renew Warninq
On True Neutrality
To Small Nations
Berlin Poper Advises
Profit From Czech
Example
BY WALLACE r. DEUEL..

BERLIN, March 18 (By Radio).-
The "co-ordination" of the Czechs
and Slovaks we'll under way, the
Nazis turned their attention today
to other small peoples in Europe
and called upon them to adopt poll
cies of true neutrality" toward the
Reich.
The Nazis have frequently made
these demands in the past-and
provided their own highly special
definition of true neutrality
the fate of -Slovakia. to
which the Nazis specifically call the
attention of other small peoples,
lends special force to today's warn
ing.
The Berlin Lokalanzeiger is one of
the mouthpieces used today to warn
the still surviving small peoples of
Europe to maintain true neutrality"
in their relations with Germany.
After declaring the fate of Czecho-
Slovakia was very special case"
because the Czechs provoked" the
Reich, the Lokalanzeiger says:
oAldA4 SGdCCto "lllSll, OuU Ol OOlll
pride and shrewdness, have always
refused to allow themselves to be
used as balls on the billiard table of
the power politics of certain great
powers, are fully justified today. And
those small states can profit from
both eXamples-from the fate of
Czecho-Slovakia and from the con-
duct af Nf II 10 fac rV,I, ioh =
carefully, and also inwardly, re-
manned independent"
Zeitung Repeats Advice.
The Frankfurter Zeitung repeats
this advice, although in a charac-
teristically gentler and more indirect
way:
Small states which seek guaran-
tee of their independence in policy
of true neutrality (whatever forms
of international law this neutrality
may take in individual cases. need
have no fear of German pressure
of extension it declares
The Nazis have given various in
dications in the past of some of the
rules of conduct they require of
states which wish Germany to con-
slider them truly neutral:
When the Belgian government
transferred some of its gold reserves
to London, for example, the Voel-
kischer Beobachter, Adolf Hitler's
organ, said that this had endan-
gered Belgium's neutrality. LAS a
guarantor of the independence of
Belgium, Germany cannot remain
disinterested in this question" 1t de-
clared Neutrality as announced
by King Leopold III is doubtless en-
dangered if the government loses its
freedom of action through deposit
ing its gold in London"
Violations Cited.
TRUE neutrality" is also violated,
the Nazis say, when freedom of
speech and press are ABUSED" by
utterances which the Nazis declare
are insults of the Reich, its leaders,
its philosophy of life, its armed
forces or anything else about it. In
this connection, the National Zei-
tung of Essen, organ of Field Mar
shall Hermann Goering. today de-
clared that press reports that the
Czechs' forces prevented German
troops from occupying Pressburg
constitute IAN offense against the
honor of German arms" because
they reflect discredit on the troops
fighting qualities.
Allowing the Jew, freemason and
assorted other categories of persons
and of course, those who the Nazis
say are "Reds"-to exercise any in
fluence in country also has been
held here to be incompatible with
true neutrality" And the Nazis
say that it is especially and danger
ously "unneutral" for neighboring
power to be party of a pact of
neutral assistance, to say nothing
of any more binding obligations
with third power.
Devoting themselves to allegations
that have openly abandoned their
previous claims of basing their for
eign policy on national and racial
principles, the Nazis undertake to-
day to justify the destruction of
l06SSAAO-oAoNdhAd VII lCdl, CCOs
nomic and various other grounds.
In some cases an attempt is even
made to argue that the absorption
of 100000 Czechs is not incon-
sistent with national and racial
principles.
Restoring Order Called Basis.
The Hamburger Fremdenblatt, on
the other hand, makes no pretense
OF advancing this argument.
1T is not these historical grounds
which have now caused Der Fuehrer
to give up the pure idea of national
ity in building up greater Germany
and to take over q greater task" but
it was necessity to restore order"
which led him to do so, it argues.
Copyright, 1899, by the Chicago Daily
News, Inc.