Evening star., 1941-03-05
By the Associated Press.

by JES ASSOG4hLeu TISSo'
SOFIA, Bulgaria, March S.
Britain broke off diplomatic rela-
tionS with German occupied Bull
garia today, marking what Brit
ish Minister George w. Rendel
called "the first step toward
plunging Bulgaria into war and
her territory into a bloody bat
tlefield."
The break, which brought the
shadow of death and destruction
closer to Southeastern Europe, came
at the moment that British Foreign
Secretary Anthony Eden and Gen.
Sir John Dill, chief of the Imperial
Army Staff, concluded their talks
with Greek leaders at Athens on
defense of Greece against an ex-
pected hourly attack from Adolf
Hitler's armies.
AS events rolled forward at break
neck pace, Turkish leaders in An
kara let it be known their nation
would remain faithful to their alli-
ance with Britain despite Hitler S
laSt-minute message in an attempt
to force wedge between the Allies.
In that message, dramatically
flown to the Turkish capital yeSter-
day, the German Fuehrer was said
by high quarters in Ankara to have
expressed desire to look after Tur-
keys interest and well-being."
Antonescu Sees Goering.
Premier Gen. Ion Antonescu of
German-occupied Rumania flew to
Vienna today for a four-hour con-
ference with Reichsmarshal Her
mann Wilhelm Goering, while a
million Rumanian reservistS were
masSing near Rumania'S Prut River
frontier with Soviet Russia.
Soviet leaders Monday publicly
condemned the occupation of this
country by German troops.
Termination of the conferences
among Mr.. Eden, Gen. Dill and
Greek leaders in Athens found thou
sands of Greek soldiers and work.
men feverishly reinforcing fortifi-
cations barring mountain passes
from Bulgaria, through which it
was believed the Germans were pre-
pairing to smash at any moment.
German troops we're reported
massing in ever-increasing numbers
on Greece's frantier as steady
streams of tanks, armored cars and
heavy artillery rolled over mud
churned roads into this country
from Rumania.
Fleets of heavy bombers and
fighter planes stood ready on run
ways of Bulgaria'S airports,. only a
few minutes by air from Greek soil.
In Yugoslavia, Sir Ronald Camp
bell, the British Ambassador, con-
ferred with Premier Dragisha Cvet-
kovich and Foreign Minister Ak
sander Cincar- -Markovich regarding
their position while the Yugoslav
general staff pushed precautionary
defense measures.
AS the shadow of the German
military steam roller heightened
over the Greek frontier, the Greek
high command stubbornly an
nounced:
THE army and Greek people have
decided in the face of events, no
matter from what direction, to fight
on with the same undying will for
their liberty and their fatherland"
Reports reaching here said II Ger
man divisions, or about 100000 men,
already had reached the Greek
border region by nightfall. A gen.
eral staff set up headquarters at
Plovdiv, Bulgaria's second largest
city.
Nothing was known here about
what forces the Greek general staff
was maintaining across the border,
but an Athens general staff COM
munique admitted that considerable
forces" had been sent to Macedonia
and Eastern Thrace-areas facing
acknowledgements of a new situa-
ton"
Up until early this evening diplo-
matte dispatches said there were no
signs of an imminent British land
1see BALKANS, Page AID