The Wilmington morning star., 1947-07-18

W.H Foreign Secretary Ernest
Bevin said today that ne would
work for fulfillment Of the Mar
shall plan without dividing Europe
or the world into blocs.
Denying charges that he was try
ing to divide Europe, Bevin told
a convention of the transport and
general workers union:
Nobody wants war-neither we
nor the United States nor Russia
nor France. l refuse to think of
a potential enemy and direct my
policy that way. l will not think
of atom bombs or anything else
except things that will mean sew
eral hundred years Of peace for
Europe, the cradle Of civilization
Bevin took several guarded
cracks at Russia in the speech he
made to the powerful union-now
comprising 1,313,629 workers -
which he founded in his early days
as a labor leader.
He said he had been accused OF
following the Munich conference
pattern, which led to Germany's
seizure of Czechoslovakia.
81 was told that l was leading
the world to Munich" he said.
s'That has been dropped now that
Czechoslovakia went to Moscow
This was a sarcastic reference
to the Czech boycott of the Mar
shall plan under Russian pressure.
Il have been charged with try
ing to divide Europe" he contin.
ued. IT do not want 10 divide
Europe or any part OF the world
or to divide America from Europe
This pranet is so small that we
cannot afford divisions anywhere.'
At another point he said that it
was no use trying to unite a
world which was still dominated
by the bitterness of a war that
accumulated natural differences.
"You can't tell a country|5,O OO,-
600 of whose citizens have been
incinerated-that they must forget
all about it and be good neigh
bors with the fellow who did it,
Bevin said. "You can't tell a man
who vas driven into slave labor
with a whip and the threat of a
concentration camp to fall on the
other fellows neck.
1.-THE Germans thought they
were supermen. Then victory went
the otner way and now other peo-
pie think they are supermen.'
Bevin told the convention that
all British troops in India would
be home by early next year. De-
parture of British troops from In
dia depended on the outcome OF
Egypt's appeal to tine United Ma
tons against the present Anglo
Egyptian treaty, ne said, and Bri-
fish troops would leave Italy after
all s%ignatories had ratified the
italian treaty. Greece had been
an anxiety, he said, "but that
country will be liberated very
soon from our troops, too"
Before long Britain will not
have a soldier in any country
abroad and the British empire will
be stronger than before the war,
he said.
Bevin made a voluntary report
to the union because he feels obi
gated to DO SO each year. He
built the union into one of the most
powerful in the world before he
left it in 1910 to join Winston
Churchill coalition cabinet.
AS a secret session after the
speech the convention approved a
resolution which said:
This conference calls upon the
government to carry out a foreign
policy that will meet its commit
ments to the UN and assist in
building up friendly relations with
nations and peoples working for
peace. The keystone OF this policy
must be close friendship with those
countries who are pledged to a
program similar to that OF the
labor government
In pledging his full support to
the Marshall plan Bevin comment
ed that he had been much criti-
cised for endorsing the policy of
dollar help. He was convinced,
lhe said, that Britain could work
within this policy and still be in
dependent. In the Marshall offer
the United States told Europe,
"See what you can do for your
selves and we will supplement it,"
he said.
81 think that right" Bevin said.
"America made a great contribu-
ton to victory but we feel they
should contribute to peace with
their great productivity If the
Marshall plan fails it will not be
my fault"
But Britain can maintain its in