Evening star., 1947-03-14
BY the Associated Press

MOSCOW, Mar. 14.-Prospects
for Big Three Foreign Ministers
talks concerning the Chinese
crisis, with China present,
dimmed today despite Russian
inSistence, as an authoritative
source said it was highly unlikely
that China would agree to par
ticipate.
The Chinese maneuvers, starting
with Soviet Foreign Minister Molo-
tov's written request for such
conferences last night, shared keen
interest among the western delega-
tions with a whopping Izvestia edi-
torial, which in the first real Rus
sian reaction to President Truman's
message about Greece and Turkey,
virtually accused him Of breaking
U. N. obligations and of trying
to grab the two countries.
The impression was growing
strongly that Soviet and American
competition for world leadership
was boiling down to naked power
diplomacy in which China, Greece
or Turkey are or may become points
of conflict such as Eastern Europe
has long been.
The force of Soviet feeling was
shown by the blunt words the edi-
torial applied to Mr.. Truman. 1t
is very unusual for an official Soviet
publication to talk harshly about
the head of a state, no matter how
they lambast lesser lights.
Chinese Rejection Seen.
The Chinese seem anxious to keep
out of the current situation and the
authoritative source said the Man.
king government was almost certain
to reject a prospective invitation to
sit in on the talks Mr.. Molotov
urged.
P. S. Foo, Chinese Ambassador to
Moscow, called on Foreign Secretary
Bevin today.
The developments on China and
the reaction to President Truman's
speech overshadowed the plodding
progress of the Big Four foreign
ministers on the German peace
treaty: they could not seem to skip
old arguments. Germany still ap-
peared the main key to basic East
West relations.
A writer in Pravda, Communist
Party newspaper. today urged the
Big Four to make a treaty with
Germany" rather than dictate a
treaty "to" Germany.
This line of Soviet policy, seeking
early creation of a centralized Ger
man government, is in opposition
to British and American federaliza-
ton plans.
Another commentary, in Izvestia,
the Russian government newspaper,
declared that "all sincere peace
lovers desire success" for the Min
isters' Council and assailed pessi-
mists who foresee failure.
Marshall Reply Waits.
Secretary of State Marshall, top
American officials said, had not re-
piled to Mr.. Molotov a few hours
before the opening of the fifth ses-
sion of the council on the Soviet
Minister'S request for informal dis
cussion of China. The fifth session
began at 4:20 pm. $3.50 am. EST
If China refused to participate in
such talks, Gen. Marshall almost
certainly would refuse, because he
is unwilling to take any action which
the Chinese could consider an af-
front.
This left open the possibility that
he could still give Mr.. Molotov the
information requested either in a
single, brief meeting, or without any
meeting. But it meant-emphati-
cally-that Gen. Marshall would not
engage in any actual conference on
the matter without China's presence.
The French delegation held the
view that unless the Americans,
Russians and British took decisions
outside the scope of their 1945 Big
Three action on China, France had
no interest in participating in the
new meeting.
"The question of Far Eastern re-
lations is of great interest to
France" an official spokesman said,
land If any new decisions are to be
discussed, France wants full share
(See MOSCOW. Page A-4.)