Evening star., 1947-04-01
Major Showdown Near
Jas Big -Four Meet in
Restricted Session
By NewboId Noyes. Jr.
s.or stoff CORRESPONDENT

NSAA1SAA VA y SAS5A& &s4AAA41V ~ RAS@
pares today to meet in restricted
session-which means stripped
for action-the general feeling
here Is that a major showdown
for this conference may be at
hand.
And now that some Of the initial
excitement which greeted Secretary
of State Marshalps speech yester-I
day has subsided, observers are
realizing that perhaps its principal
effect was to diSpel once and for all
the persistent illusion that Russia
and France will be aligned together
against the United States and
Britain, If such a showdown comes.
It may not come today. But
tensions are mounting to the point
where it. is felt, something must
break soon, one way or the other.
Gen. Marshall, clearly manifesting
his disappointment at the lack of
accomplishment SO far, has served
a thinly yeiled notice on the con-
ference that he would rather have
no agreement now on Germany and
Austria than the kind Russia seems
to be preparing to hold out for.
Economic Issues Defined.
His speech yesterday drew the
battleline very tight. He clearly
defined the issues on the economic
side Of the German problem and
ruled out, so far as the United States
is concerned, the kind of fuzzy COM
promise which CLOSED over these
issues at Potsdam. Russian Foreign
Minister Molotov replied politely
with restatment of the position
Russia has held all along. 1t was Gen.
Marshalls idea that the council,
normally attended by about 20 rep
resentatives of each of the four
powers, should be whitfield down for
today's meeting to 16 persons in ALL
This is device, previously employed
at the New York and Paris Council
sessions, to permit the ministers to
talk more frankly, make fewer
speeches and generally come to
closer grips with the problem in
hand.
AS the delegations break out their
diplomatic graphing irons and pre-
pare thus to move in at close quar-
tiers to one another, it is important
to keep in mind just what Gen.
Marshall said and did not say yes
terday.
He did not, of course, rule out the
possibility of compromise without
sacrifice of principle by our delega-
ton. He did insist that there be no
room for misunderstanding as to
what compromise means, assuming
one is developed.
Conditions Set Forth.
The Russians have said repara-
tions out of current German produc-
tion is a prime condition to any
agreement on their part. The French
have said insertion into the German
peace treaty of a clause guaranteeing
them the right to import the coal
they need from Germany is prime
condition to any agreement on their
part.
Gen. Marshall did not tell the
Russians in so many words that they
could not have their reparations out
OF production. He did not tell the
French in SO many words they could
not have their coal.
He did, tell both Russians and
French that the United States won't
accept imposition of these demands
as a condition to overall negotia-
tions. 1t was the imposition of the
condition rather than the demands
themselves which he rejected cat
egorically. There is a distinction
here.
He also-and this was probably
the crux of his speech-told the
Russians and French that the
United States does not believe they
can both have what they want-not
because we won't agree to it, but
because it is physically impossible in
our view for both demands to be
satisfied, whatever position we and
the British take. |
Demands IrrecOncilable.
This is to say, if France gets the
coal she wants, Germany will not
have enough coal left to produce the
reparations Russia wants. And if
Germany is to maintain enough in
dustry to pay her own way in the
world and produce reparations for
Russia at same time, she will need
the coal France wants.
Russia and France, each to avoid
itself in the conference
have been acting as if
they supported one another's posi-
tion. 1t has been a phoney situa-
ton, and both French Foreign Min
ister Bidault and Mr.. Molotov knew
1t. From now on it will be very
hard to keep up the pretense.
For the French want German set
tlement which will give them coal
and security. Mr.. Molotov has been
saying, and he said again yesterday,
that they should get both. |
But France can only get coal and
security If Germany is held down to
a relatively low level of industry.
That is why Mr.. Bidault has been
insisting German steel production
should not rise above 100000 tons.
High Level Favored.
And Mr., Molotov, in his answer
to Gen. Marshall yesterday, made
it more clear than ever that Ger
many must have high level of in
dustry in the Russian scheme of
things-higher than the level we
would prescribe, since it must sup
port reparation payments out of
production. That is why Russia
can look with equanimity on the
prospect of German steel produc- |
ton Of as high as 100000 tons.
Gen. Marshall, then, did not drive
a wedge between the Russians and |
French yesterday. But he pointed
out, in effect, that the position we
and the British occupy is, in fact, |
between the widely separated Rus
sian and French position on this all
economic ground.
He said in effect that it is i'm
possible for us to compromise with |
both the Russians and French at the
same time, even if we should want
to. Which is another way of saying
tina P11SSippS apd ErepcI, will howe