Evening star., 1946-04-15
PoIond's Envoy
Sets q Precedent

Sets q Precedent
Question of Franco and Spain
Is Held Applicable to Russia
By David Laurence
Ambassador Lange Of Poland really
did q service to the cause Of peace and
human freedom when he proposed that
the case OF Franco and Spain be exam
ined by the United Nations Security
Council. And the American and British
Governments wisely agreed to look into
| it.
Mr.. Lanse, of course, doesn't realize
the precedent he isssetting. For il the
Security Council can at any time it
wishes penetrate the question Of SOY.
ereignty and decide whether a partic-
ular government is or Is not q threat
to peace, then the way is opened to give
| similar treatment to. the newly elected
government Of Argentina, where Peron,
| like Hitler, after q period Of strong arm
| tactics, won an election.
Likewise, the way Is opened some day
| to examine the government At Moscow.
| Is the Russian government Of today,
| with its totalitarian set-up which can
! make war overnight without consulting
the wishes Of the people, an instrument
whose continued presence in that form
could conceivably endanger world peacep
Is a government which maintains con"
nection with and gives support to Com
munist agents and parties in many
countries of the world a menace to
world peace? Is a. government which
intrudes in the politics of the Balkan
countries and in France and Belgium,
| in Iceland, and even in Britain by
carrying on Communist party activity
that upholds Moscow policy as against
the national policy of these countries
| menace to peace?
Questions Apply Equally.
These questions can be asked as read
| ily about Russia as about Spain. 1t Is
| well known that Russia admits only
handful of correspondents to Moscow
! and indirectly controls the press in the
Balkan and Baltic countries now under
| Soviet domination. Is such . course
likely to maintain or some day to en-
| danger the peace of the world?
The United Nations organization is
| forbidden by It's Charter to look into
| purely domestic questions, but the RUS
sian-Polish argument for consideration
of the Spanish problem is that Fascist
| Spain is a menace to peace. The RUS
| sian-Polish thesis is correct. The Allied
governments stood by from 1888 to 1893
| and did not oppose the transformation
| of Germany into a totalitarian state
which early threatened to, and even
tually did, menace the peace Of the
world.
The argument was widely made then
that what happened inside Germany was
nobody's business but the German peo-
pies, and yet 1t was apparent that
! totalitarianism would eventually bring
on war. I
| Totalitarianism is threat to world
peace wherever 1t shows its head
whether in Spain or in Argentina or In
Russia Unless this principle is recog-
nized, democracies must maintain lal@
armaments and be ready for a sudden
attack. Totalitarian Germany and ia
pan did not break diplomatic relations
| and then declare war. Hitler attacked
Warsaw without warning just as the
japanese attacked Pearl Harbor with
out warning.
Assurance Needed. 1H -
| The democracies which make up the
backbone Of the United Nations cannot
turn their thoughts to the ways Of peace
and civilian reconstruction SO long as
there is a possibility Of another world
war in the oting. Only in the last few
weeks, Russia's fragrant disregard Of
her promise to evacuate her troops from
Iran caused many an American to be-
come apprehensive that another pat
tern Of aggression was in the making.
| The Russian newspapers and radio
present only what the government
allows them to distribute. The views
Of other countries either are distorted
or suppressed. This in itself is one Of
the most dangerous factors tn inter
national relations. That's the way both
the Japanese and the Germans stirred
up hatred against foreign peoples and
/
made it possible for q propaganda-fed
nation to 90 to war with other countries
which had no designs on them and no
intention Of attacking them.
Totalitarian Russia made an alliance
with Hitler in 1899, and the same form
Of totalitarianism governs Russia today.
It can make or ur,nake alliances and
it can infiltrate among the governments
and political parties Of other nations.
! Surely, If frances Spain is a subject
for examination by the United Nations
Security Council-then some day
small nation somewhere which finds
itself threatened by Communist in
vasion can ask that the tactics and
strategy of Moscow also be examined
by the Security Council The Spanish
incident is significant precedent no
matter what disposition OF the contro-
versy is finally made by the Security
| Council
| Reproduction Rights Reservsd3
]