Evening star., 1946-08-11


ings be open to the press OF the world
This was a departure from past prece-
dent especially as 1t concerns the meet
ings of conference committees-where
details Of treaty clauses are debated
and major decisions made.
Somewhat surprisingly, Soviet For
eign Minister Molotov supported the
move for open meetings. Many Amer
ican officials believe that he is becom-
ing increasingly sensitive to world
public opinion.
Mr.. Byrnes is convinced that agree
ments bearing out American principles
of right and justice can be achieved
much more easily when they are debated
openly where the world can fguratively
listen in on the arguments, than when
clashes of self-interest are covered up
in secret negotiation by diplomats striv-
ing to drive a bargain.
Mr.. Lansing's experience at the 1919
Peace Conference gave him similar
conviction. learned the hard way. The
method of private conclaves," he wrote,
gave opportunity for intrigue, plotting,
bargaining and combining" A "grievous
blunder has been made" Mr.. Lansing
admitted.
Mr.. Byrnes served notice to the world
last week that he was avoiding the
"blunder" of what he described as an
attempt to dictate organization of the
present peace conference through pri-
vate conclaves of the Big -Four.
He disclosed in a speech at one Of
the Rules Committee open meetings
that Mr.. Molotov had suggested private
meetings of the Big Four Council of
Foreign Ministers to select a chairman
of the committee, and to discuss who
should be named chairman of the
various conference subcommittee. Mr.,
Byrnes said he had rejected the sug-
gestions as ''unwise' because those were
matters for the Rules Committee and
the conference itself to decide.
Challenge Accepted.
He went on to read from the record
of minutes of previous meetings of the
Big Four to refute Mr.. Molotov's charges
of inconsistency in the American stand
about conference voting procedure, and
then persuaded Mr.. Molotov to accept
his challenge to lay their dispute before
the public opinion of Russia itself.
Il am entirely willing to leave the
record I have read to be judged by you
and by public opinion" Mr.. Byrnes
said. Il have confidence in the people
of the Soviet Republic"
Mr. Molotov accepted the challenge
and the Associated Press reported from
Moscow on Thursday that Pravda, Com
munist party newspaper had published
the Byrnes and Molotov statements on
the subject in full. This was something
of milestone in Mr.. Byrnes' fight to
bring world public opinion-including
that of the Russian people-to bear on
problems of the peace.
In one of his radio reports to the
Nation last May 20. emphasizing the
need for initiative, resourcefulness and
unrelenting effort" in what he described
as an offensive for peace" Mr.. Byrnes
said there is no iron curtain that the
aggregate sentiments of mankind can
not penetrate"
In his last such radio report. less than
two weeks before the present Peace Con-
ference opened, Mr.. Byrnes made clear
some of the reasoning behind his efforts
to bring out into the open the problems
involved in the constant struggle" for
the understanding with Russia that is
essential to effective peace settlements.
I'm the long run, we shall have much
better chance to work out our problems
if we and our Allies recognize the basic
differences in our ideas, standards and
methods instead of trying to make our
selves believe that they do not exist or
that they are less important than they
really are" he said.
Aside from the Paris Peace Confer
ence open sessions and such public re-
ports as made by Mr.. Byrnes during
recent months, progress away from Sc
cret diplomacy is marked by full press
and radio coverage of the United Ma
tions General Assembly and most meet
ings of the Security Council-which still,
however, reserves the right to meet
behind closed doors upon occasion.
One Obstacle Left.
One big obstacle remaining in the
way of a well-informed public opinion
throughout the world is the Soviet at
titude toward freedom of the press In
Russia and the countries within its
sphere of influence, newspapers are not
free by American standards What they
print is controlled by the government
and naturally it is difficult for articles
explaining any point of view contrary
to that governments to get any circu-
lation
Another obstacle is a sort of hang
over from secret diplomacy policies in
our own State Department, despite Mr..
Byrnes' emphasis upon free access to
information at international confer
ences. This takes more the form of a
negative approach toward giving the
public detailed information upon world
affairs as it develops. than it does a
deliberate policy of withholding infor-
nation.
Secretary Byrnes generally is frank
in supplying information, through an
swers to questions at press conferences
or in formal speeches. But rarely does
the State Department volunteer day-to-
day information as such situations
build up-information that would help
the public to be prepared for crises
and better understand the development
of American nolicv and the reasons for
it. When such information is given out
it usually is in response to questions
by newspaper reporters-questions often