Evening star., 1947-03-11

m1llGaTy attache IN Berlin was kept in
formed about the progress and plans of
operations.
During one Of his visits to the supreme
command, he was shown q map outlin-
ing the territories to be occupied. These
included the oil fields of Drohobycz
which had been assigned to the Russian
sphere.
His report to Moscow produced enough
excitement to induce Stain to per
sonally ask the German Military At
tache, Gen. Kostring, for clarification.
Kostring took the Soviet protest to
Berlin September 1O, where there de-
veloped somewhat acid exchange be-
tween Ribbentrop and the supreme
command on who was to blame for
the misunderstanding
The result Of this incident was
greater Russian insistence upon being
kept up to date on events.
Regular conversations were carried on
thereafter.
The rapid collapse Of Polish resistance,
which MOSCOW had not expected, imme-
diately raised the problem Of bolstering
the broad agreements which had been
hashed together hurriedly in August.
Once more Ribbentrop went to Mos
COW (september 20 though the Ger
mans were not particularly happy about
being the visiting parties twice in sue
cession. This time they were received
with q guard Of honor and q full-dress
band.
Two days Of intense negotiation fol-
lowed, during which Stain did all the
essential speaking for Russia. Stain
expressed his satisfaction with the Ger
man victories and his anticipation of
friendly cooperation In the strength
enlng OF the August treaty. He imme-
diately suggested an important change
IN the Polish stipulations Of the treaty.
The line Of the four rivers, 1t had oc-
CURED to him, cut right through solidly
Polish lands. Thus it left the com.
pletely Polish Lublin district in Russian
hands.
Another Boundary Fixed.
History, said Stain, had shown that
the Poles, like all peoples, strove to live
IN the same state. If the original pro-
vision were permitted to stand, the
Poles would do their utmost to create
discord between Russia and Germany.
He therefore proposed that the German
sphere should be showed forward to the
Bug, In return for which Lithuania
should now be assigned to Russia.
Ribbentrop once again telephoned
Hitler who quickly signified his full
agreement.
One member Of the German delega-
ton was sharp enough to note that
the boundary outlined by Stain COIN
cided almost exactly with the so-called
Curzon Line of 1920 and thus would pro-
vide an admirable basis for . future
Russo-British understanding.
History, this individual also urged, had
demonstrated that the interests Of the
eastern powers in Poland had been an
element Of union rather than Of dis
cord, and this principle had, In fact,
been one Of the cornerstones OF Bis
marck's policy.
These observations received scant at
tention and the rather free and easy
drawing Of frontiers in which Stain
personally welded the red crayon (an-
other source says green) proceeded
rapidly, much to the distress of later
boundary commissions which had to
worry about such concrete details as
the location of roads, power stations,
and industrial establishments.
Secret additional protocols provided
for the ceding Of the Mariampol dis
trict Of Lithuania to Germany and
that the two contracting parties would
determine the fate of Poland in COM
mon. 1t was further agreed that each
party would inform the other in ad-
vance OF any important action in
Europe
I'm tomorrow's Star-Both sides trade
economic concessions, but all Is not well,)
(Copyright, 1e47)