Evening star., 1945-04-04
BY FRANK r. KENT.

undesirable. Certainly, agreement
can be reached on details, which
now seem disturbing, in time tt
avoid 4 step that might inperil tht
whole collective security cause
Nevertheless, it is unfortunate thai
anything should have happened Il
diminish confidence here in the sin.
cerity and competence Of the Presi.
dents leadership In internationa
affairs. Yet, 1t is clear that the dis
closure of his Yalta Acquiescence ir
the Russian demand for three votes
in the assembly has done exactl!
that.
Nor is it possible to deny that THU
Is Mr.. Roosevelt's own fault. 1t can
not be attributed to the isolation
lists, or the conservatives, or thu
anti-New Dealers. 1t cannot b'
blamed on Senator Byrd, hostile
press, "reactionary business inter
ests, an "undemocratic" Senate Of
any OF the elements or individual
which Mr.. Roosevelt's spokesmer
are accustom( i to denounce in thu
effort to cover up his fragrant SIM
Of omission and commission.
Roosevelt Alone to Blame.
This time Mr.. Roosevelt-and NJ
one else-has put himself in a posi-
ton which even his most servll'
friends, such as Senator Pepper o.
Florida, find difficult to defend.
The heat in this business has no
been engendered so much by tn
agreement to give Russia three
votes in the assembly though GER
tainly a good deal can be sale
both as to the wisdom and jus.
tice of this proposal. 1t is. of course
argued that votes In the assembly
amount to nothing; that all the
power Of the league is lodged ir
the Security Council; that the as
sembly is merely debating society
without authority to act; that II
would really be just as well Il
there were no voting powers at all
Conceding all this, still the psyche.
logical effect on the small nations
Of giving the Russians and, accord
ing to the original plan, our
selves three votes each merely to
Offset the British six, is not good
And If, as contended, the number
Of votes in the assembly Is alto
sether unimportant, what Is the
sense Of the Russian demand?
Secret Deal Not Hinted.
However, criticism here Is not
concerned with the merits of the
vote question but over the unex.
planned secrecy Of this Roosevelt.
Stain agreement. 1t was made al
Yalta over six weeks aSo-and nc
news was given out. Mr.. Roosevelt
in his report to Congress nearly
month ago, failed to mention 1t. In
neither his correspondence with
the American delegates named to
represent us at San Francisco MOI
in his press conference did he sc
much as hint at it.
The first hint Of such an agree
ment came in the publication OF q
story in the New York Herald
Tribune. This forced the Presidents
hand, and a reluctant White House
statement admitting the agreement
followed.
Considering these facts, it is moi
surprising that resentment Is fel,
both in official and unofficial circles
And, 1t is not surprising that two
questions are insistently asked: Q)
II there is nothing to be ashamed o1
in this agreement why was it con-
cealed? (2) Are there any other
agreements made by Mr.. Roosevelt
and Mr.. Stain that are still kept
secret?
Answer Will Be Found.
Doubtless, way of anaying the
disouiet which these persistine
doubts have created will be found
Some means of restoring the shaker
confidence within the delegation ane
in the country as whole is essen
tial. The coming conference can bt
either a great success, molding thu
future of mankind for hundred
years, or it can be good deal Of
bust, establishing a security organi'
zation on power politics alone, i'm
potent to assure justice or preven
aggression.
The decision, 1t is agreed, lies no
with the British and Americans, bu
wholly with the Russians. We ma.
as well look that fact In the face.
Basis for this conviction Is tn
record. This shows, first, that In tn
meetings Of the Big Three, 1t ha
been Mr.. Stain who has consistent.
prevailed over Mr.. Churchill ant
Mr.. Roosevelt. They have gone II
his direction, not he in theirs.
Soviet Unilateral Acts.
Second, the record shows that
though conference after conference
has been held and statement afte,
statement made announcing com
plete Russian solidarity with tn,
Allies, Russia, time and again, ha!
acted unilaterally, proclaiming afte,
each act an Allied solidarity tha'
does not square with the fact tina
her Allies were not apprized Of tn,
act In advance, much less gave ap'
proval.
To cite instances, there is tn.
absorption Of the Baltic states, thu
sweeping aside Of the Polish gov.
ernment recognized by America anc
Britain; the Romaniar domination;
the three-vote demand at Yalta
the insistence upon the presence al
San Francisco of Russia's puppet
Polish government and, most re.
Gently, her policy toward Turkey
which has caused great concern ir
Britain and considerable bewilder-
rnent here.
There is In this country much
gSod will toward Russia and a pro-
found belief that for the peace oi
the world, cooperation between
Russia and ourselves is extremely
desirable. However, clear as this is
II must be admitted that the Rus.
sian course has made things rather
difncult for her friends.
The point now Is whether she viii
continue to make 1t difncult at Sar