Evening star., 1944-02-02
NewWorIdR Role
Seen as Soviet
Rea|ignsStates
Each Of Is Republics
Moy Seek Voice in =
Postwar Councils
BY HENRY C. CASSIDY.

Associated Press Foreign Correspondent
Moscow, Feb. 2.-Foreign dip
lomats examining today the So
Wet Unions reconstruction of
the relationships of its 16 re-
public with the outside world
saw in the move possibilities for
one of the broadest, most elastic
foreign policies of any govern
ment in the world-one which
could give Russia the opportu-
nifty to swing great weight in Al
lied councils.
Increasing interest was shown in
the trends the new program might
take, especially whether the Soviet
Union will seek to set up separate
representations in the various coun-
tries with which it now has diplo-
matte relationships.
Autonomy of the republics in for
eign affairs would give the Soviets
the legal right to ask for multiple
representation in such councils as
the League of Nations like that en-
joyed by the British Commonwealth
of Nations.
Brilliant Work Seen.
There are diplomatic authorities
here who feel the Russians have
pulled off a brilliant piece of work
in international diplomacy, no mat
ter what are the immediate devel-
opments.
The history-making plan adopt
ed unanimously by the Supreme So
Wet (Russian ParliamenD last
night gave the 16 republics the pow
er to deal directly with other coun-
tries and raise their own army units.
Foreign Commissar Vyacheslav
Molotov submitted the proposition,
explaining to the delegates this
new step forward in the nationality
concerning the various
nationalities in the union, resulted
through the success of the Soviet
Union as a whole in the war against
the invader" &.
Great Bargaining Power.
Autonomy of the 16 republics-in-
Guiding Estonia, Latvia and Lithu-
ania-would give the Soviets great
bargaining power in foreign rela-
tions. 1t is believed that Russia will
seek to realize as much as legally
possible from the reconstruction.
Denied membership in the League
OF Nations for long period, refused
diplomatic recognition by many ma
tions, young Soviet Russia now is
coming up fast automatically.
(Secretary of State Hull re-
fused today to attempt an evalu-
alton of the Russian move. He
told his press conference he saw
no connection between the reor-
ganization Of the Soviet republics
and the Polish border disputes,
and that such reorganization
Is a matter that comes under
the exclusive jurisdiction of the
Soviet government)
The reconstruction, involving re-
vision of the 1896 constitution, gives
each republic it's own commissariat
Of national defense and foreign
affairs.
Said to Demonstrate Strength,
Some idea of the effect of the
changes was provided by DR.. Jo-
hannes Wares, President of the
Estonian republic, who asserted, in
approving the plan, that "the dip
lomats of the national republics
will be guided in their work by the
general principles of Soviet diplo-
macy"
N. M. Ponomerenko, secretary of
the Communist party in White
Russia; Alexander Bogomlets, presi-
dent of the Academy of Sciences of
the Ukraine; Latvian Representa-
tive Wilhelm Lazis, and Eustace
Paleckis, president of the Lithuanian
Soviet Republic, also indorsed the
plan.
Lazis, the Latvian representative,
asserted that the United States still
recognized the "old Fascist regime"
Of Latvia and said Latvia's position
was not understood abroad despite
the 1910 plebiscite by which it was
Joined to the Soviet Union.
Nikolai Gretchuka, president of
the Ukrainian Republic, declared
that certain western neighbors of
tht Ukraine" had ''unjustified
(See SOVIET REPUBLICS, Pg. A-85