Evening star., 1946-08-02
u. S.-Soviet Relations
Growing No Better
Armed Services of Two Nations
Behave AS If War Exists
By David Lawrence

| Relations between the United States
| and Russia grow no better. In many
respects the armed services OF the two
nations behave as if state of war ex-
listed. The mysterious detention OF
| two American Army officers who ven-
| tured into the Russian zone near Ber-
| lin, presumably on holiday of sight
seeing. has not been explained. The
officers were held for 27 days, and dur
ing that time the senior Russian COM
mander told Gen. McNarney, the U. S.
commander in Berlin, that he did not
know the whereabouts of the pair. Yet
they were at Potsdam. near Berlin, all
the time. The Russians said they
thought the Americans were spies.
| Not long ago Russian naval officer
was accused of spying but was acquitted
after jury trial in Seattle, Wash.
Before these two episodes, the Cana
dian government discovered a spy ring
of Russians interested in trying to find
out secrets related to atomic energy.
Suspicious About China.
In China it is suspected that the Com
munists are being aided by the Rus
slams and that the attack on the Ameri-
can Marines may have been indirectly
| connected with Russian encouragement
| of the Chinese Communists. 1t would be
| to Russia's interest to get American
| Marines out of China so that the Rus
| slams could aid in the overthrow Of
| Chang Kai-shek.
| All this is not healthy state between
nations which claim to be at peace and
which have sent representatives to Paris
| to write the first set Of peace treaties.
Nor is it encouraging to read the speech
| of Ambassador Gromyko, who tells the
| United Nations that under no circum-
stances will Russia agree to any inter-
national inspection If she is given the
secrets Of the atom bomb. Clinging to
| the principle of sovereignty, the Rus
sian viewpoint is that Russia can be de-
| pended on to do her own inspecting and
policing to prevent violations of the
agreement with respect to the use OF
atomic energy.
The Russians must be naive to believe
that the American Government will
| yield the knowledge 1t has about the
atom bomb and turn it over to totali-
tartan government whose record of sup
I preston Of freedom inside Russia indi-
Gates an unscrupulous and ruthless use
Of power. The present state of suspicion
in Washington is such that few people
trust Russia to refrain from using the
atom bomb If she ever gets possession of
its secret or finds out from her own
scientific Investigations how to use 1t.
On the contrary, the feeling here is
that Americas whole defense plan for
the future must be based on the as
sumption that a sudden attack could be
launched by totalitarian government.
While Russia is not mentioned, the sus-
picions are usually pointed in that direc-
ton.
Discouraging Statement.
Russia may be wholly innocent OF the
impression her acts are producing here.
Mr.. Gromyko cannot possibly realize
unless he is acting under rigid instruc-
tions from Moscow to say certain things
irrespective of their effect-how dis
couraging is his statement about inter
national inspection. II Russia Is to
maintain her right of veto in the Secu-
rity Council, she can keep herself aloof
from any inspection.
Maybe Russia feels she will soon have
the atomic secret anyhow and can do as
she pleases. But American sentiment,
as reflected in Congress, is opposed to
giving away anything or to stopping the
manufacture of atom bombs until Russia
manifests her willingness to accept in
spection.
1t may be that Russia is relying on
left wingers' inside the United States,
including various scientists, to agitate
for the handing over of atomic secrets
to Russia. The crusade for giving the
secret to Russia without any assurance
that Russia will agree to refrain from
using the material aggressively against
peaceful nations is one of the unex-
planned mysteries of our times.
One thing is sure. Mr.. Gromykos
speech has ended for a long time to
come any possibility that the United
States will share the atomic secret with
Russia or any other power unwilling to
accept international control and inspec-
ton.
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