The Wilmington morning star., 1945-04-05

SOVcllul1ClII LII +1O11SOAA SoA4 A-ASA =
or less openly in his memoran-
dunn on the San Francisco CO.
ference.
But with three votes each, Rus
STA and the United States could
swing all decisions on drafting
committees and on the special
commissions to be created. I have
talked with several diplomats
from the smaller powers who ex-
press frank disrnay at this latest
turn of events.
Before the disclosure Of the Sc
cret voting agreement at Yalta,
members Of delegations from the
secondary powers talked on a min
imum of six weeks at San Fran
cisco and a maximum Of eight
weeks or longer. That would al
most certainly make the confer
ence coincide with the end Of Or
gained resistance in Germany.
What would happen then? For
eign Minister Anthony Eden would
have to 60 back to London. So
would B:dault of France, Spaak
of Belgium, Van Kleffens of Hol-
land and all the other chairmen
of delegations. They simply could
not be out of Europe with deci-
sions being taken that will shape
the future for decades to come.
In fact, they must help to make
those decisions.
How long the newest develop
ments might be expected to pro
long the debate no one can say.
But certainly it will prolong 1t.
Delegates who will represent the
secondary powers at San Francis
co have regarded the Dutch men,
orandum as a rallying point for
their own dissatisfaction with the
way in which power is concen-
trated in the Big Four. One OF
the ambassadors, in an oH-the-
record talk, put it this way:
eve think the Van Kleffens
memorandum went too far. New
ertheless, we intend to stand be.
hind ito a point. Not, let me
say, to a point that would pre-
vent any agreement at all being
reached"
That was before the secret vot-
ing agreement bombshell was
dropped. Today this same ambas-
sador mi G hi feel even more
strongly about the power tactics
Of the Big Three.
I have just been in France and
I think I know what the secret
agreement will mean there. They
were deeply offended at not hav-
ing been asked to participate in
the final days of the Yalta con.
ference when the fate Of Germany
was discussed. Then, supposedly,
they were informed of all the de.
cisions taken at Yalta. Now, &C.
cording to dispatch from Paris,
Foreign Minister Bidault reads in
the newspapers of the secret
agreement.
There is still another reason for
postponement. Russia has an
nounced that her ambassador to
Washington, Andrei Gromyko, will
head the Soviet delegation rather
than Foreign Minister Molotov or
one of the top men around Stain.
This will almost certainly make
for further delay. Whatever one
may think of Gromyko's capaci-
ties as a diplomat-and his col
leagues have high respect for him
he will not be able to say yes
or no without consulting Moscow,
and that takes time.
A perfectly good reason for post
ponement is written in the head
lines that leap out of every news.
paper. You cannot lay out the
framework of a new world at the
exact moment that the old one is
in final collapse.
Put it off until midsummer OF
even early fall. Then the prob
lens to be confronted will be
much clearer. There will not be
the same desperate urgency. And
perhaps. in that interval Of time
it will be possible to mend the
serious damage done to confidence
by the news Of secret agree
ment at Yalta.
Copyright 1915 by United
Features Syndicate, Inc.)