Evening star., 1947-09-19
Marshall Talk Shows
Department Failed in
Soviet Negotiations
Effort to Mobilize
World Opinion Behind
u. S. Position Is Begun

SstSta AS IVtVDttixS
World Opinion Behind
U. S. Position Is Begun
By David Laurence
What Secretary Marshalrs speech
before the United Nations really
means is that the State Depart
ment has failed to come to a
diplomatic agreement with Russia
on the major questions of the day
and has decided instead to try to
mobilize world opinion behind the
American position.
All suggestions that the United
States deal directly with Russia and
try to dispose on a broad scale of
all questions in single agreement
apparently have been of no avail.
Evidently the State Department has
come to conclusion widely propa-
gandized thus far in America
namely, that the Russians are not
to be trusted and that negotiation
Is futile.
When nations do not trust each
other, they usually 60 to war sooner
or later, being provoked into war
by some overt act.
The planners in the State Depart
ment insist there Is not to be any
war because neither side wants it.,
but they overlook the fact that ma
tional pride often produces a war
that nobody wants because one side
or the other gives provocation pub
licly and the other side does not
care to back down in humiliation.
If the State Department feels it
can continue to attack Russia in
the public press and before so i'm
portant a gathering as the United
Nations and If the Soviets by their
daily propaganda feel they must
attack the good faith Of the United
States, there is little hope that
the debate in the United Nations
Assembly will alleviate hurt feelings
or produce an atmosphere in which
diplomacy can be effective.
Failure Not Explained.
What the State Department has
not explained is why it has failed
to negotiate directly a general set
tlement of all Russian American
questions and why it has insisted
on piecemeal handling of disputes
In different parts of the world while
proclaiming policy of hostility to
Russian interests in the Near East
as evidenced in the announcement
OF the Truman Doctrine.
Russian cooperation in the Mar
shall Plan was made impossible
from the standpoint of Soviet pride
because 1t was linked up with the
Truman Doctrine, which was con-
sidered by Russia an attack on her
interests in the Near East.
The peace of the world has often
been advanced at critical moments
by public disclosure of all the facts.
1t has often been retarded by emo
tional outbursts of governmental
spokesmen at a time when diplo-
macy has ceased to exert construc-
tive influence.
When the Korean question, for
example, is dumped into the United
Nations Assembly, it is a confession
that diplomacy has failed. The U.
N. Charter does not give any au-
thority to settle questions growing
out Of the war. Unless America
takes the position that the Russian
attitude in Korea is a threat to the
peace of the world" there is no
legal reason to justify bringing it
before the Assembly.
Has the State Department given
up all hope Of negotiating on a gen.
eral scale with Russia? Is the SUBJ
mission of the American case to the
Assembly last step in desperation
to mobilize world opinion so that, if
war comes, America will have the
backing of allies throughout the
globe?
Question of What Next?'
This question will be asked from
now on because when a subject like
Korea Is submitted to the assembly,
it Is wholly different from any pro-
cedural questions such as are in
volved in the veto or in the appoint
ment Of Security Committee to OBJ
serve world trends. It means that
II the Korean question is to go
before the Assembly now, the Ger
man and European questions grow
ing out Of World War II may SINH
larly be submitted at future date
Maybe that Is the plan of Secre-
tary Marshall, but it would be re-
grettable if his speech is interpreted
to mean that he and his planners
see only war as the eventual out
come. For in rejecting any negoti-
ations with the Russians, the alter
native is economic coercion by the
United States and its allies.
While almost everybody in official
circles processes to believe war is
not near and that 1t is not newt
able, the persons responsible for our
foreign policy do not seem to be able
to answer the question of what
next" If Russia declines to be CO.
creed by our public statements OF
by our use Of dollars in Greece or by
our economic aid to Europe. A re-
examination of the record of our
diplomacy in relation to Russia
might be helpful in determining
what are the bases for Russian dis
trust Of the United States and con-
versely, American distrust of Russia
Can nothing be done any more by
negotiation between the two coun-
tries that ought to respect one an
other and trust one another?
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