Detroit evening times., 1945-09-27
PAUL
NIALLON
Behind
The News

WASHINGTON, Sept 26-
w The American writers with
sympathy for internationalism
and generally for Russia, are
now daily reporting TO us their
deep dismay that MolotoV
would not bulge an inch to-
ward agreements in the Big
Five council of ministers.
They are taking leadership in
declaring the conference every
thing from a bust TO a farce.
As ! gather il, they foreSee the
Russians doing in Europe just
about what we went TO war to
stop the NaZiS from doing
namely, gobbling it up.
The news has not created a
corresponding shock on the in
side here. Within officialdom,
not much else from Russia was
genuinely expected. No Mos
COW policy declaration of diplo-
matte action, during the war
or since, justly gave grounds
for assumption that Stain was
really fighting for the Atlantic
Charter for Romania and Italy,
except as it might be inter-
preted beyond our Comprehen-
sion in RuSsia'S fundamental
political interests
THUS, while the run of Lon
L don reports may claim the
Russians outSmarted us again"
and term the conference a fail
ure from our standpoint. the
inner judges see we have merely
made a beginning toward de-
velopment of a policy by under
standing W h we are up
against.
The London Council drew the
issues down from the abstract
realm of Allied propaganda into
actual application, and discov-
cred the void.
Moscow had been talking
y about democracy for Romania,
while meaning hegemony over it.
Not until the London Council
sought To bring the issue down
10 the terms of practical action,
did il become unavoidably ap-
parent TO those who preferred
10 he blind. that we were talk
ing about opposite things.
In this case, as on Hungary,
YugoSlav and in fact nearly all
issues, the public is now able to
discover not only that void
exists, but the precise dimen-
SionS Of II.
In short, every one can now
measure in inches how far we
are. Until this basis of discus
sion was accomplished, progress
was impossible.
OF COURSE it would have
" he easy for us to accomplish
Success" of this conference, as
in the past, by giving Russia
everything asked, or asking for
nothing for our ideals, while
pretending complete accord"
That kind of success" is the
success of surrender. Getting
rid of that kind of success for
conferences is in itself a con-
structive achievement W h h
opens the way for fair negotia-
tionS, realistic compromises and
possibly genuine agreements in
the long run.
The most effective bargaining
point Russia has pressed against
us in world dickering so far is
that our statesmen thought they
needed a successful outcome TO
advertise TO our people.
Stain and Molotov assumed
no responsibility for successful
conclusions. They could let a
conference fail.
If we have dug ourselves out
of that hole in London, the con-
ference may eventually prove
more of a success in its very
failure, than previously success
full" conferences W whi n have
failed TO motivate action, and
thus are recognized now to have
been real failures Of the past.
THESE arc not my observa-
Il tions, but a report on the
inner import of the situation.
They may lead to development
of a workable and sound Amer
ican foreign policy and a con-
Structive defense Of our ideals
and purposes in the world
ahead.
As 10 the personal inside OF
the affair. I can report state
Secretary Byrnes has lost con-
tact with his lifelong mentor,
Bernard Baruch.
The personal relationship
there is not happy.
Mr. Byrnes has been going
strictly on his own, with such
advice as he cleaned presum-
ably from two fountain sources,
Ben Cohen, counselor, who has
had no experience in foreign
affairs. and James Dunn, the
assistant secretary, who knows
them inside and out. These two
were apparently at each ByrneS'
car in London 10 the exclusion
of others.
They all seem bent on build
ing new American policy
from scratch, over a period Of
months and years. outside the
fears and domestic politics
which largely motivated the
Roosevelt administration - and
facing tho facts al last.
II may be significant that