Evening star., 1945-11-18
Two Unportison
Volumes About
Soviet Russia
SOVIET FAR EASTERN

By Harriet L. Moore. prince
ton: $2.50.)
U. S. S. r. FOREIGN POLICY.
By Victor A. Yakhontof. (Co,p-
ard-McCann; $780,
Reviewed by
JOSEPH H. BAIRD.
Most of the books which have
been written about Soviet Russia
during the last five years have been
of the violently partisan variety
The majority of them have come
from the typewriters either OF
foreign correspondents or professors
who had visited the Soviet Union
and returned to describe either q
Utopia or q backward people living
under an inefficient, chaotic system
The wo volumes reviewed here
fall into an entirely different cate
CORY. They present, not personal
observations, but rather studies OF
the evolution of Soviet foreign policy
in the modern world. Both-par-
ticularly Prof. Yakhontoffs book
are written from a pro-Soviet view
point but they are based on
copious documentary material. Con-
sequently they should prove valua-
BILE to the student who wishes to
follow the evolution OF modern
Russian policy up to its present
manifestations in the Balkan coun-
tries and the Far East.
The Soviet Viewpoint.
Prof. Yakhontoff, a one-time gen.
eral in the Tsarist Army who is
now lecturer at the New School
for Social Research in New York
and an American citizen, has,
despite his aristocratic background
completely accepted the Soviet view
point. He argues with some
cogency that what many Americans
consider alterations in Moscow S
policies are due entirely to the fact
that the Western World attempted
for years to isolate the Soviet
Union; that Britain, particularly
prodded Germany to make war on
Russia, and that Russian policy in
Eastern Europe is a natural and
Justiflable attempt to attain Sc
curity.
He maintains that Russia has
acted entirely within the spirit and
letter of the Yalta agreement in
its sponsorship Of new regimes in
Poland and the Balkan countries.
In no case" he says, ION the
entire frontier did the Soviet gov
ernment force its own political
ideas on the occupied countries.
Nor did it foster any radical changes
beyond its insistence on removing
Fascists from official positions"
Many American students of for
eign affairs will find statements in
Prof. Yakhontoff's book with which
they will heartily disagree. But it
must be ranked as an able, If brief
summary of. the Narkominders
policies from the Soviet point of
view.
The Border Incidents"
Miss Moore's book, sponsored by
the International Secretariat of the
Institute OF Pacific Relations, is
more limited in scope than that of
Prof. Yakontoff-and also more OBJ
Jective. She confines her research
to Soviet policy in the Far East
during the IA years between the
japanese invasion of Manchuris
and Russias declaration of war on
Japan.
Here one will find the full story
OF the long train of border Incl
dents" along the Amur which
marked Soviet-Japanese relations
before the conclusion of their nom
aggression pact in 1941, the frontiers
and fisheries dispute and the story
Of Russian-Ch relations, in
cluding the intricacies of the DO
litical situation in Outer Mongolia.
More than half of Miss Moore,s
book is devoted to documentary ma
terial, taken mostly from Soviet
sources. 1t is an invaluable hand
book for the student of Far Eastern
affairs.