Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1946-03-08

AS'tC" 0ic tOliS SERIES Oh QlIuCulJleS
with the Russians which have worn
thin the patience of our representa-
tives in the UNO and created appre-
henslon that neither agreements nor
treaties. inside or outside the UNO,
would end the insistent Russian
push to acquire territory and power
not in harmony with the principles
. and purposes of the UNO. The re-
cent speeches of Secretary Byrnes
and Senator Vandenberg were APP
plauded as meaning that, convinced
of the futility of placating, we were
now prepared to be firm"
Everybody seemed to be for that,
though no one appeared to know
how our firmness was to be made
effective. In brief, we had no plan.
And then along came Winston
Churchill, who, years before it hap
pened, solemnly, though vainly,
warned his own country of the ap-
proach of World War II and ear
nestly pleaded for firmness to avert
it, with a suggestion by which our
proposed firmness could be imple-
mented. The Churchill suggestion
is the only suggestion from any
source for doing anything besides
talk about firmness.
Increases Weight.
an addition, the special arrange
ment" for peacetime military CO.
operation which he proposed for the
English-speaking nations is simple
and logical-and it seems practical.
Inevitable allies in war, We in
evitably must be allies to prevent
war-and are. Our great common
desire for peace seems to make the
sort of special arrangement" Mr..
Churchill suggests wholly natural
and intelligent. 1t is the way to
make our combined weight within
the UNO far more potent than it Is
now.
1t seems an arrangement in the
interests Of permanent peace as well
as in the interests of, the English
speaking nations. 1t will make it
far more difficult to bluff us or bully
us. It has several other obvious
advantages-such as an increased
effectiveness in national defense at
decreased cost. 1t would strength
en- rather than weaken the UNO
and it involves no hostility to Rus
STA, with whom all the English
speaking nations want to be friends
It would reduce the ability OF Russia
to make monkey of us and it
would make the world more secure
against war.
Shrink From Policy.
One would think that in the abb
sence of any plan of our own to
make our desire for a firm" policy
anything more than a desire this
Churchill plan would be welcome,
indeed. Strangely, it seems not to-
be. Strangely, there seems shrink
ing from it by the very gentlemen
who have been shouting loudest for
Q firm" hand with Russia.
That was to be expected from the
extreme radicals who always take
the Russian view, but it seems illog-
ical and not very clever for those
vino are not so constituted. Yet
Senators and others who few
hours before were clamoring for
firmness shrank from this realistic
and practical plaza plan, inciden-
tally, which would be intelligent and
logical even if the Russian attitude
were thoroughly cooperative and
presented no difficulties at all.
Some of the reasons for senatorial
shrinkage are serious and some ap-
pear silly. For example, the solemn
bleat of one pro-RusSian radical
that Mr.. Churchill is trying to "cut
the throat" of the UNO is not
worth discussing. Other Senators
talk about. our involvement in
British imperialism" and British
colonial policies" There, of course,
are questions here that would have
to be worked out, but there seems
no good reason why, if the obvious
advantages of the special arrange
~ment'' are conceded, the obstacles
could not be surmounted by able
men anxious to promote the same
great purpose.
No Other Plan.
Some way, surely, could be found
by which we would not be committed
to anything or involved in anything
except joint military and naval
strategy in the interests of world
peace. At any rate, the argument
THAT we must not consider such al
proposal because the Russians would
not regard it as friendly does not
seem too sound under the circum-
stances.
Nor is the contention that 1--WE are