Evening star., 1941-01-26
Soviet Accord With i. S. Likely
To Weaken Its Ties to Axis
Check on Progress of Japan's New Order in East
Asia Also Seen; Agreement Raises Question
of Recognition of Conquests
Br Felix Morley.


+ for the better will stiffen the firm atti-
| tude in behalf of neutrality and indie
| pendence which has lately been shown
| in both Sofia and Belgrade.
These instances suffice to indicate the
far-reaching political influence of the
Welles- -OumanSky accord. The develop
ment will be cause for serious thought in
Japan. and will be distinctly irritating to
Germany. But the major beneficiary,
clearly, is Russia. 1t is the diplomatic
prestige and the political influence OF
the Soviet Union which receives the
greatest gain from the achievement
pulled off in Washington by Constantine
OumanSky.
Russia's Power Growing.
Clever though he is, Mr.. Oumansky
would not have gained this success eX-
cept for the steadily growing power of
the nation which ne represents. Play
ing their own game with single-handed
purpose, impervious to every considera-
ton except the long-range gain of the
Soviet Union, the Russian leaders have
from the outset of the war proceeded
to exploit the upheaval for the benefit
of Communism And all objective re-
ports are to the effect that living condi-
tions in Russia are improving as they
steadily become more intolerable
throughout the rest of war-torn Europe
The reports of economic progress in
Russia may be debatable. Not so the
evidences of political gain, which are
sharpened and confirmed by the WelleS-
OumanSky agreement. That agreement
wipes out penalizing measure applied
by the United States when Russia
launched her invasion of Finland. 1t
thereby tacitly accepts in behalf of the
Roosevelt administration. the dictated
peace whereby Russia annexed a large
slice of Finnish territory.
As a matter of fact this is not the first
indication from Washington that the
United States is beginning to lean to-
ward recognition of the conqueStS made
by Russia since the outbreak of the war.
In presenting the sem-annual war debt
bills for the last war; in December. the
Treasury Department advanced formal
claims against both Poland and Rumania
but stated that in view of the current
governmental conditions in Czecho-
Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
no statements of sums due and payable
have been rendered to these countries.
There were shreWd observers who at
the time argued that this distinction i'm
piled a tacit recognition of Russian an
nexation of the Baltic States regardless
of the Interpretation which might be put
on the failure to dun Czecho-Slovakia.
Recognition of Conquests.
A difficult question for Anglo Ameri-
can adjustment is posed if the Welles-
Oumansky agreement means that the
United States is now disposed to rec
ognize the conquests made by Russia
during this war. For significant part
of those conouests was made at the
expense of Poland and has never been
accepted as valid by the government
of Poland. now operating after a fash
ion III London.
The Nazi aggression against Poland
was of course. the factor which finally
caused Great Britain to declare war
against Germany. bE QdTDOTlnS lne
Polish government-in-eX the British
have so far repudiated also the subse-
! quent Russian annexation of Polish ter
ritory Indeed the presence of the Po-
liSh shadow government in London is
cited by Moscow as an insuperable OBJ
stacle to improved relations between
Russia and Great Britain.
The Welles Oumansky agreement,
therefore, is out of line with British
policy. 1t will not be welcomed in Great
Britain, which can scarcely recognize
Russian spoilation of Poland while let
ting it be understood that restoration
of that country is British war aim.
BY another striking coincidence, the
Welles-Oumansky agreement was an
nounced in Washington as a govern
ment spokesman in London told the
House of Commons that British hopes
for a wider political understanding"
with Russia have failed to materialize.
Such Anglo Russian understanding
seems unlikely to be fulfilled as long as
British war aims seem to Moscow in
compatible with territorial objectives
which Russia has attained and now
seeks to have recognized.