Evening star., 1941-09-25
Administration Lifts
Licenses on Goods
To Free French
Exports to Territory
Controlled by Vichy
Remain Under Control
BY BLAIR BOLLES.

The Free French regime has re-
ceived preferential economic treat
ment from the United States denied
to the Vichy government, 1t was
learned today, through an admins
tration action which lifts the re-
quirement that shippers of goods to
Free French Africa obtain a special
export license for every shipment.
Exports to Free French Africa now
depart under a general license.
This special consideration has
been accorded also to Syria, now
under a special government since
its conquest by British forces, whose
victory there cut the tie that bound
Syria to Vichy. Shipments to that
large part of Africa which is still
attached to Vichy-Tunis, Algiers,
Morocco and West Africa-remain
subject to special licenses. Dakar
and Abijan, two French African
Atlantic ports that could be useful
to German submarine commanders,
are in the area for which special
licenses still are required, :,
The license action and the dis
closure that the administration has
named a special mission to Brazza-
vile, French Equatorial Africa,
headquarters of the Free French
leader, Gen. Charles de Gaulle, for
conference and observation reflect
a revolution that has occurred in
the official administration attitude
toward the de Gaullists.
AS recently as the summers be-
ginning, the fact that Washington
had formal diplomatic relations with
Vichy restrained the State Depart
ment from recognizing even in the
most unofficial and quiet manner
the special claims Of the De Gaullst
movement for American Considera-
ton.
In the last three months. however,
the State Department has been
abandoning this hardset point OF
view and swinging over to the idea
that the existence of the ViChy con-
tact does not preclude the prospect
of encouraging the De Gaulllsts
even though we are represented at
headquarters of the Petain govern
ment.
1t was suggested to the State De-
partment that in maintaining
formal, correctness of relations with
Vichy and granting no .encourag-
ment to the De Gaullists, the ad-
ministration was discouraging the
French elements that objected TO
the Vichy policy and putting a psy-
Geological barrier in the way OF at
tanning an officially stated American
objective-the liberation of Europe
from the Axis.
No Prospect of Break.
The State Department, it is re-
liably reported, has adopted the
point of view that the United States
can remain on formal. polite terms
with Vichy at the same time it de-
velopS informal relations with Braz-
zaville. There is no prospect of a
break in United States-Vichy re-
lations.
The administration, for more than
a year, alternately has tried to en-
courage or browbeat Marshal Petaint
in Vichy, and Gen, Maxine Wey-
gand in North Africa, to throw off
the German yoke, or at least to give
that neither Vichy and
the strength it commands, nor North
Africa will ever be put at the mill
tary disposal of Germany.
There is some disposition here now
to feel the extent of collaboration
between Vichy and Berlin has been
stretched to its possible fullest, and
that French reprisalS against the
United States for assistance to Free
France will not be forthcoming.
Those repriSals could take the form
of greater collaboration.
The mission to BrazzaVille will in
clude diplomats, military officers and
economists. They will survey the
Free French needs, test the Free
French position and discuss Free
French prospects.
The State Department is holding
conversations now on the problem
whether the Free French are eligible
for direct lease-lend aid. The Free
French at the present share in lease
lend through the British, who dis
tribute certain goods to the De
Gaullists.
Increased shipping facilities be-
tween this country and England
could be available if the United
States Government took steps to
improve the status of Free French
men in the light of passport regula-
tions. and regulations governing per-
mission for seamen to come ashore