The Wilmington morning star., 1945-04-30
Important Meeting
BY ARTHUR KROCK


ed on former Secretary of State Hull this
week. at the Naval Hospital where Mr.. Hull
is still under treatment, there were many
interesting things with which to fill the hour
hey were together.
The President had spent several days in
discussions with Mr.. Moloton, the Foreign
Commissar of the US.S.R., over the Polish
and International trusteeship questions and
other problems affecting the UNCIO at San
Francisco. He had talked long on these same
issues, and Moscow's attitude toward them,
with Mr.. Huls successor Mr.. Stettnius, and
with Britain's Foreign Minister, Mr. Eden.
And the President had a speech to prepare
for the opening of the UNCIO on which he
might well seek counsel from the Father Of
the United Nations"
1t is not unlikely the President told Mr..
Hull in detail what he said to Mr. Molotoff
and what Mr. Molotoff said to him, and, if
some reports of those conversations are true,
the former Secretary must have felt the pride
of pioneer. For when he went to Moscow in
1943 to attain the famous Declaration" he
used something of that reported technique him
self and he came back believing the results
were useful.
While preparing for his journey, Mr.. Hull
collected numerous documents describing the
present and prospective strength of the Unit
ed States, physically and economically. Those
documents made it plain to any reader whose
people stood in need of postwar assistance
in any quarter that the United States was
| in a position to extend it as other nation
could. Natural resources, manpower, techni-
cal skills, food potentials, fabricated mater
| ialS, machinery and other assets were listed,
| not forgetting our very large store of gold.
| Before problems on which there were Russo
American differences came up on the agenda
occasionally much three days before
Nv u1,n of
these documents. Undoubtedly the Russians,
whose country has been terribly devastated
by war and who have lost millions of men,
read the information very carefully and did
not miss its postwar bearing. Whether or
not these reminders of what one good friend
could do for another, if that friendship was
reciprocal and understanding helped the con-
ference to it's successful conclusion cannot
be known. But Mr. Hull came back thinking
they had certainly done no harm to his OBJ
jective.
| Now the reports are that the President also
mentioned physical well as spiritual facts
| to Mr.. Molotof, to demonstrate his statement
that continued close Russo-Amerlcan relations
would insure Russias security as well as pay
excellent and essential postwar dividends.
Such relations, the President is represented
as pointing out, were never achieved or main
tanned between two nations when one acted
unilaterally, and often by force, instead of
dILeI dIlu lSSlllCIll, Pal w
ly when the other had numerous elements OF
strength that made it unnecessary for these
acts to be performed out of sense of inse-
curity
If the Big Three stand together, keep their
pledges and are just to all other nations and
the deserving groups in those nations, Mr..
Truman is reputed to have observed, no one
of them need fear aggression, new rise OF
'fascism,''. or interfere imperially with the
affairs of neighbors on the basis of such fears.
From these arguments, if accepted, the con-
clusion was easy that Russia, for example;
could ease its Polish International political
policy and place less stress on disputed de-
tails in the Dumbarton Oaks draft with great
immediate and prospective benefit to Russia
and without risk of any evil consequences.
American military power could also have
been mentioned as part of this assurance
and there is some reason to think 1t was
Until our troops formed a junction with the
Red Army, each people knew the strength OF
the other only by report. Mr. Molotoff was
in that situation, although his reports have
been more intimate and more volunlnous
than have come to any Russian except MarsnaI
Stain. Therefore, if the President dWelt on
the unparalleled power of our air forces and
their police value against whatever aggression
may be attempted in the immediate future,
J, and if he gave some account of our war ma
chine and the labor and resources pool behind
it, that would have provided strong argu-
nent and even warning.
At Moscow the Soviets did not attempt to
) match Mr.. Hulps documents with their own
balance Sheets and perhaps Mr. Moloto11'
> since the President was concedlng RUSSIAN
power, did not do that in Washington. 1t would
have supported the Presidents point But II
he got broader interpretation OF tne
Yalta agreement on Poland it was not BE-
Icause he came empty-handed for Whatever
adjustment Of views were proposed by M
President who as Missourian,' called TINS
'horse-trading'' but did not use the term IN
its sordid sense.
: For example, Russian armies are now
: astride most of the areas in Europe "nlch
G will produce the surplus food ana minerals
of that Continent when conditions approach
normal Excess grains, meat potatoes OIL
$ natural gas, iron ore, coal and gold Will come
$ in chief bulk from territories OF the Soviet
or those now dominated by its armies and
political influence. Doubtless none Oh the con-
ferees failed to realize that.
e -V
Manila is dead, and Tokyo mist dle-not in
reprisal but as a defense measure necessary
to insure Pacific peace. - Brig Zen, Carlos
y P. Romula.
+ 1 was getting smaller and smaller and the
l. lice were getting stronger and stronger. Pvt.
Earl L. Todd of Evansville, Ind, on liberation
from German prison hospital