The Wilmington morning star., 1946-09-07
Foreign Policy
By ARTHUR KROCK

BY ARTHUR KROCK
WASHINGTON-The speech which the Sec
retary of State, Mr.. Byrnes, will make at
Stuttgart on Friday has been read here with
hope and approval by high officials who rec
ognize in scope and detail the problem to
which Mr.. Byrnes will address himself. This
problem is, through such concerted effort as
can be achieved with Great Britain and
France, to rebuild a Germany that will attain
a decent living standard through industry and
foreign trade but will not become a war po-
tential again in its own right or part of the
Communist political front.
Because of this final point it is neither ex-
pected nor hoped that Soviet Russia under its
present doctrines and leadership will ever be
a willing partner in the general enterprise.
And no prospect appears to the top tier Of
officialdom here that the Stain regime will
be succeeded, during the lifetime OF the cur
rent German problem, by one which would
cooperate heartily to the same ends. There
fore the United States and Great Britain, with
the assistance developing French policy may
give, must work it out. That is the reason
for the decision to correlate the economy of
the American and British zones, for the de-
cision to encourage a revival of German ex-
port trade within that economy, and for the
forthcoming speech OF Mr.. Byrnes.
An illustration why Soviet Russia cannot be
looked to as a partner in the enterprise is
best furnished by the present Government of
Czechoslovakia. Prague has become a de-
pendable political ally of Moscow, and that,
of course, was the Soviet design and hence
has hearty Soviet approval. But in the view
of the Governments of the United States and
Great Britain, and in the view of many in
tluential persons in France, a German gov
eminent thus allied politically and theological
ly with Moscow would be a world disaster.
In this view, that would mean the end of
hope of a Germany reconditioned to the West
~ --- E - Ill
balance fo- peace through a democratic
economy.
1t is as natural for the Western powers to
support and work for this thesis as for the
Soviets TO oppose it. This is as fully recog-
nized in Washington and London as in Mos
COW, and So it is to influence the future
shape of Germany that Mr.. Byrnes is going
to Stuttgart.
This correspondent was informed today that
the Secretary's special design is to give the
German people an answer to Mr.. Molotov's
recent speech on German unity which was
adroitly fashioned to demonstrate that only
through Russian policy could Germany again
become a self respecting and prosperous
nation. Mr.. Byrnes, it was predicted, will
have nothing particularly new or startling to
say, but he will restate our policy in its
most attractive form and dwell on it's po-
%tentials for good to the German people. The
points CT that policy, as officials defined it
today, are these:
We do not wish to grind the Germans under
our heel. We intend to give them every chance
to work back to decent and fruitful economic
conditions. We intend to give them every
chance to develop peaceful industry, and we
nave never agreed to hold them to an agri-
cultural soclal-economy, whatever they may
have heard Of the 'Morgenthau plan" We
want to work with them as their eventual
friends and not as their eternal enemies. And
we will concern ourselves with their useful
advance, keeping our workers in Europe un-
til the job is done.
Every possible measure is being taken to
circulate the Secretary's speech among the
Germans Wherever they may live, bv means
OF the radio and the printing-press. This pre-
sents no difficulties in the zones occupied by
the United States, Great Britain and France.
ana the statement was made here today that
there are enough radio sets in the Soviet zone
to carry Mr.. Byrnes' words to its inhabitants
despite what the controlled press NAV do with
them.
In this effort to prevent the Germans
tnrough hopeIessness, misery or alluring prop
asanoa' from becoming a permanent part of
the Soviet hegemony, American officials have
IN mlnd the threat to our detectives that
would be created by the junction OF German
techhlcal and scientific skill with Russian
nlahpoWer. 1t is conceded that if the Soviet
Union SiiouId succeed in joining that skill to
us strength one huge deficiency which is be-
heVeo 10 exist among the Russians would be
removed and a heavy industrial and scientific
machine could be constructed as great and
eEecuVe as our own, perhaps more so. In
this opinion the Russians lack that aptitude
IN the mass construction anG use of heavy
machlnery-the chief warmaking potential
which the Germans and Americans especially
have and which is growing among the British.
L the Russians cannot fully ally this German
talent with their own varied strengths and
natural resources, then the conclusion is that
such War-rpinded leaders as may exist among
them will have a powerful check on their
designs.
AS the occupation zones of Germany are
now divided, these industrial and scientific
technicians are mostly concentrated in the
areas controlled by the United States, Great
Britain and France. The Russian zone IS the
source of food products, and there is some
coal in Silesia. But the German skill essential
to heavy Industrial production and effectlve-
ness is scarce there. And one of our policy
detectives is to hold this advantage, whlch
would be lost i Germany were comnunlzeo.
These very practical considerations are up
permost in the official mind here, though tney
are more the cause than the content VI 'he
Stuttgart speech.-New York Times.