Evening star., 1947-04-16
Western Delegations
Prepare 10 Wind Up
Moscow Conferences
By Newbold Noyes, il.
Star SsoH ee,rsspendsns

By Newboid Noyes, il.
Star sseff esvrsspendsnt
MOSCOW, April 16.-The three
western delegations to the Coun-
Icil of Foreign Ministers are
getting ready to wind up their
business as quickly as possible
in the next few days, convinced
that this conference is now all
over but the shouting.
There is still some shouting to do.
Today the ministers talk about Ger
man coal and the Austrian peace
treaty. They am supposed. before
finally adjourning, to consider a re-
port OF the Trieste Financial Com
mission.
They may take last-minute
crack at Secretary of State Mar
shall's suggestion that occupation
forces In Europe be cut down. They
could even, before disbanding, 60
back over some Of the basic problems
| OF the German settlement which
they have 50 far been unable to
settle.
But the outlook for all these dis
cussions is black. 1t is so black
that, unless the possibility OF agree
ment is quickly apparent, the ten
dency will be to toss the issues to
the deputies and push on toward
adjournment.
Marshall Exasperated.
As visiting delegates scramble to
arrange their passage home, they
can ponder what Gen. Marshall said
yesterday, a few hours before he
went at last to the Kremlin for his
talk with Prime Minister Stain.
Bitterly exasperated after five
weeks of futile pickering. he criti-
sized Soviet Foreign Minister Molo-
tov for destroying any possibility
of agreement on four-power treaty
to keep Germany disarmed. Then.
jreverting to fundamentals almost
lost in the hurlyburly of recent
Council debates, he reminded his
colleagues that Russia had refused
to carry out the Potsdam agree
ment until they got agreement on
reparations from Germany's cur
rent production.
THAT stand of the Soviet gov
ernment," he said, has been the
,@@& ~f ,,.@r& ~ o,,r ~ ifSo,,1fiac and
lis the basis of our disagreement at
this table,
1t sounded suspiciously like his
epitaph for the conference.
Austrian Accord a Qaestion.
The great question now, Of course,
lis whether 1t may still be possible
for the Ministers to salvage some
sort of agreement on Austria out OF
their overall failure to accomplish
anything else of importance at this
session. Gen. Mark Clark, the Sec
retary's Austrian deputy, has pub
licly insisted it is possible. In theory,
at least, he is right. But. In fact,
he knows very well how small the
possibility is.
To understand why 1t Is so small,
one has only to study the logic be-
hind the epitaph Gen. Marshall pro-
nounced yesterday.
The economic factor is the key to
the overall problem faced here. The
Russias so far have refused to con-
sider(any solution to the economic
problem unless they get reparations
out of Germany's production.
Faced with this situation, the Min
listers turned their backs two weeks
ago on the crucial business Of san
economic solution and tried to see
what other minor agreements could
be wrung out OF the conference.
There was by then obviously no hope
Of agreeing on political issues in
Germany. There were, however,
some subjects which looked as
though they could be isolated from
the central mass Of disagreement
and solved by themselves.
France viii Get Coal.
One OF these was Frances pro-
posal that she be allowed to in
corporate into her economy the in
dustries of the Saar region, which
should be detached from Germany.
America and Britain agreed to this
| proposition and whatever happens
France will get large part of the
Saar coal, which Is what she really
wants. But Russia so far has blocked
an agreed decision on the issue. Mr..
Molotov apparently wanted to see
what kind OF deal was possible in
this connection regarding other ma
jor points of disagreement. He
would not. that is, allow the Saar
issue to be isolated.
Another problem which held the
possibility Of solution by itself was
the four-power treaty to keep Ger
many disarmed. Again, however,
Mr. Molotov proved unwilling to
allow the project to be isolated and
accomplished.
I1a~n TI~ n>