Evening star., 1947-07-04
Yugos|avs Rebuilding
Fiume 10 Rival Trieste
As Main Adriatic Port
By John P. Leoeoeos
North American Newspaper Alliance

TRIESTE, July Am direct con-
travention of the spirit, If not yet
the letter, of the Trieste clauses of
the Italian peace treaty, the Yugo-
slays are frantically rebuilding the
port of Fiume and making freight
deals with Soviet-bloc countries that
already are putting Fiume ahead Of
Trieste. as the chief Adriatje port
for Central Europe.
Ship captains passing through
Furne and American Military Gov
ernment confidential reports reveal
that this month Fiune will have
handled 100000 tons Of goods
where Trieste, with UNRRA ship
ments that have been its main
stay now drying Up, will be lucky
to reach 10000. In fact, week be-
fore the end of June, Trieste had
handled only $4,000 tons.
The jump in Fiume shipments
has come as result of deal be-
tween Yugoslavia and Czechoslo-
vakia, whereby Czech timber, sugar,
glass and ores, as we'll as imports,
are being given rail rebates
through Yugoslavia, preferential
port fees that are a third lower
than Trieste's and facilities to use
Czech currency in Yugoslavia for
payment at favorable rates.
Treaty Prohibits Acts.
Article 16 of Annex of the peace
treaty specifically prohibits sigma
tory powers from enacting rates to
"artifically divert traffic" from Tri-
este for use of other seaports; but,
of course, the Yugoslavs say they
have not yet ratified the treaty. And
the Yugoslavs have a three-year
plan for reconstructing the battered
port of Fiume, with mass labor be-
ing used to make up for lack Of
equipment.
In Trieste, the Slav brethren are
complacent as regards this last blow
to the currently dim chances of
Trieste recovering commercial lead
ership as a trade center-the port
must handle a minimum of 10000
tons a month to be selfsustaining-
since the Fiume maneuver is part
Of the three-pronged long-range
plan of Yugoslavia concerning Tri-
este
This plan involves use of Fiume
as a port rival to make Trieste more
and more dependent on Yugoslavia's S
good graces, intensive and economic
inflltration and eventual control,
and, of course, aggressive Slav-in-
spired internal politics and propa-
ganda.
Yugoslavs in Trieste Cynical.
Trieste Yugoslavs are smilingly
cynical about the matter. Even if
the port is dead commercially and
industry is idle because of lack of
raw materials, Trieste will not starve
United States relief shipments will
see to that. 1t is pretty certain that
neither Russia nor Yugoslavia will
offer any help for a long time.
On the inhltration side, the pro-
Tito forces are not doing so badly
either, although the treaty also for
UlSlS SACluSlfC dsooSNAaO3OA1o WA'AA
either Italy or Yugoslavia.
In that part of Zone B now under
Yugoslav control, which will revert
to the free territory of Trieste after
the peace treaty, new commercial
corporations and Yugoslav-style CO.
operatives are being formed. Slav
authorities are granting new licenses
to merchants and shopkeepers and
are starting a new bank in Capodis-
tria so that Slav interests will be
well entrenched when the free state
takes over.
An open plan to put trustworthy
Slavs into the VeneZia Giulia police
force, which the Communists hate,
also is afoot. At Portorne in Zone
B, the hospital staff was moved far
ther into the area that will become
legally Yugoslav and the building
now is being used to train men who
will be eligible as residents to apply
for police jobs.
Propaganda is organized on the
eastern bloc side in way which
excites open admiration from the
Allied information agencies. Tass,
the Russian news agency, and Tan