Evening star., 1947-08-17
IL. s. Soviet Farley
On Lend-Lease Debt
Reported Dragging
BY the Assoeiossd Press

The United States and Soviet
Russia were reported yesterday to
be making very slow" progress
toward agreement on the $11, ,200,-
600 900 American lend-lease sup
fplied the Russians as wartime
allies.
American officials retain hope of
an eventual lend-lease settlement,
despite the virtual breakdown of
efforts to agree in other current
conferences.
Closed-door negotiations which
began more than three months ago
were said by authorities to have
run into difficulties at the start
because Of lack of Soviet records of
what materials the Russians actually
received before VJ-day and were
still using.
More recently Russian responses
were said to be slow to specific
American proposals. This could be
put down in part to the character
istic insistence of Soviet representa-
tives abroad upon referring policy
questions back to Moscow for an
Swer.
Daily Sessions Continue.
Almost daily sessions are con-
tinuing laboriously. nevertheless, on
a working level" with American
officials assuming their opposite
members are acting in good faith
here regardless of suspicious OF
Moscow's tactics elsewhere.
Only in these Washington talks
are Americans and Russians facing
each other across conference tables
with even moderate prospects of
an eventual meeting of minds. The
latest negotiations to be written OH
are those Of joint Soviet-American
commission on Korea's future, for
whose lack of progress Secretary of
State Marshall has blamed Moscow
Even if a Korean report is SUBJ
mitted by the commission next
Thursday, as Gen. Marshall pro-
posed to Foreign Minister Molotov,
American officials look for disagree
ment even on this. As a next step
there has been under consider alton
a plan for referring the Korean
problem to the foreign ministers of
the Big -Four Pacific powers-Russia,
Britain, China and the United
States. A stalemate among these
might be referred to the United
Nations.
In any event it has been stressed
officially that the United States has
no intention of giving up the effort
to restore Korea to independence
free of domination by Russia or any
other foreign power.
Talks Started April 30.
After disregarding for year
American requests that Russia talk
over a lend-lease settlement like
the other allies, Moscow sent a
group which began talks April 30
The time consumed since then is
not far out of line with the six
months required to reach a final
settlement with Britain for a much
larger lend-lease account.
Negotiators must agree on &C least
three basic points. These are:
l. The total material which
reached Russia, after losses through
plane and U-boat attack and other
causes. The United States has vo-
luminous records, but the Russians
were reported to have advised they
were too busy fighting before w.
day to keep detailed inventories.
2. The amount of lend-Iease ma
terials expended or destroyed as a
part of the war effort. The Ameri-
can policy in negotiations with other
allies was to write this off entirely
3. The amount and value of ma
terials Russia still has and their
disposition. These were settled for
with other allies on the basis of .
or 10 cents on the dollar.