Evening star., 1948-02-15
Russia Knits
A TradeNet
Mid Europe Nations
Tied Together by
Many Pacts
Nv S;nr;1 Avrs
BY Sisrid Arns

| Many Pacts
By sisrid Arns
Moscow's trade deals with Middle
Europe have gone far enough now
to show how the Kremlin Is knitting
the whole area together into single
industrial network.
Further, the trade pacts show the
Kremlin Is trying to iron out the
disbalance between factory and
farming areas. 1t is putting fac
tories into nations which hitherto
lived for the most part OF their
farms.
The Kremlin appears to disre-
gard national borders within this
network, to shunt raw materials TO
factories and the manufactured
goods back to the raw material
producers.
Russia Is Bread Basket
Eight satellite nations appear to
be involved: Finland, Poland,
Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania,
Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania.
The trade pacts seem to show that
the Kremlin thinks OF the satellites
as filling different roles. Hungary
and Romania appear most closely
integrated into the Soviet system.
There is one sign the Poles have
more freedom. The Czechs, who had
the most freedom, are being pulled
up shorter on the Kremlin leash.
ALI OF these facts show up in the
voluminous file collected by Amer
lean trade experts both here and
in Middle Europe. Much of it comes
from the Soviet-controlled press.
Here are the major elements:
/. The Soviets appear to be the
emergency bread basket. In the past
year Poles, Czechs and Firms have
received either Russian food or fod-
der grains when they were up
against it.
2. The Soviets also seem to be a
source Of machinery for nations that
need it. Soviet promises Of machin-
cry show in several trade pacts.
United States trade experts wonder
whether they can deliver, but there
is little chance to check.
Some of the Exchanges
Russia has given Poland a $780,
000, 900 credit to be drawn on through
1856 for purchase Of machinery for
several industries.
Bulgaria Is promised Russian ma
chinery for fertilizer factories and
power and coking plants.
The Romanians are promised
Soviet steel products, railroad en-
gines and machine tools.
The Yugoslavs are promised Rus
sian equipment to process oil, chem
icals, metal and lumber. Here the
Russians have promised to buiio up
whole industries with aid from Rus
sian engineers.
Poland and Bulgaria are also
using Russian engineers.
Poland Is using Russia's speeoup
system In her factories. American
experts suspect 1t will be used in
the whole area.
3. Several Of the trade pacts show
the Soviets ship their raw ma
terials to whatever factories III the
area can process them. On one deal
the Czechs got Russian rubber and
shipped back shoes.
Last summer Poland got 10000
tons of Russian cotton. 1t paid cot
ton goods representing II per cent
OF the cotton they received.
The Czechs are promised Russian
iron and have agreed to ship rails,
locomotives, pipe and power sta
tions to Russia They are promised
Russian timber and will ship back
prefabricated houses.
Hungary is promised Russian ore,
coke and cotton. 1t has agreed to
return rolled steel and fabrics.
New Factories Planned
\ Hungary, Poland and Finland ap-
pear to be emerging as the major
manufacturing centers among the
satellites, getting raw materials
from the Soviets and the rest OF
the bloc, too.
Undeniably, the area is rich in
raw materials compared to the
Western European nations, which
will be getting Marshall Plan aid
The Western nations have many
more factories and desperately need
some OF Middle Europe's raw ma
terials.
Further, Western Europe sold
much Of its manufactured goods in
Middle Europe. II is uncertain now
whether Moscow plans to reopen
that trade.
New factories are planned for the
nations which had few or none
Poland, Bulgaria, Romania and
Yugoslavia.
4. The commercial life of Hungary
and Romania are now securely tied
to Russian strings. Soviet experts
have set up joint stock companies
in both countries to control the
major industries. They are called
"Sovrom" in Romania. They're Or
ganized to develop oil, river navi-
cation, civil aviation, electrif1ca-
tion, timber, glass, minerals and
metal working and agricultural re-
search.
In Hungary the joint companies
will prospect for bauxite aluminium
ore) and oil, process them, build
power and chemical plants, manu-