Evening star., 1948-01-15
|Reopening Of Air Base
Near TripIoIi Linked
To'Propaganda War
by the Associated Press


States will soon reopen Mellaha
highly strategic air base near Tripoli
In North Africa, which American
transport planes used as a landing
field during the war, it was disclosed
yesterday.
American air officials in Europe
said the base was being reopened
because OF additional supply-carry-
ing transport flights necessary to
serve American missions in the
Middle East, including the mission
to Greece, and The air base at
Dharan in Saudi Arabia"
(Secretary OF Defense Forrestal
said in Washington yesterday
that the Trioolitan base was mot
an air base in the military sense"
but way station on trunk
line to Athens, and that the
United States had no plan for
rebuilding an air base system in
| Africa.)
At the same time the British dis
closed that large" numbers of the
10000 British troops in Palestine will
move to Cyprus soon to make that
island even more Of key point in
Britain's Eastern Mediterranean de-
fense system.
London diplomatic circles saw the
British-Amerifan moves as impor-
tant factors in the EaSt-West prop
aganda war" in the Mediterranean.
There was speculation that the
twin moves were timed to discourage
recognition by Soviet satellites of the
separate Greek Communist "state"
proclaimed by the guerrilla chief
tain, Markos Vafiades.
The Moscow radio has stepped up
recently its barrage against United
States naval maneuvers in the Medi-
terranean, the dispatch of 1000
Marines to reinforce the Mediter-
ranean Fleet. and the continued
presence Of some 5000 British SOL
diers in Greece.
Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov
once professed an interest in secur-
ing Soviet trusteeship over Tripoli.
A Colonial Office spokesman said
he did not know how many of the
British troops in Palestine would be
sent to Cyprus, but said large"
numbers would be required because
"a base Is necessary in the Eastern
Mediterranean"
The island, about 40 miles from
the south coast of Turkey, is being
used now to lodge Jewish immi-
grants who fought to enter Pales-
tine without certificates. Malta,
Britains bastion in the central
Mediterranean, flanks Greece and
the Dardanelles on the west. Cyprus
forms a flank on the east.
Britain has set August / as the
latest date she will keep troops in
Palestine after surrendering her
mandate probably about May Is to
the United Nations.
A British Foreign Office spokes-
man said Britain, as administrator
of the former italian colony of
Tripolitania, had approved the
American proposal to reopen Mel
laha base, which was closed down
about year ago. An American
offer to sell the installations on the
field last year met with no takers.
The Mellaha baSe commands the
central and eastern Mediterranean.
Within a radius of 800 miles lie
Rome. Belgrade, Tirana, Sofia and
Athens-the capitals of Italy, Yugo-
slavia, Albania, Bulgaria and Greece
as well as Western Turkey. The
base is 200 miles south Of Malta. :
Headquarters of the United States
Air Force in Europe announced that
. small housekeeping detachment y
under the command of 1t. Col. Bruce
c. Downs, Wichita, Kans., would
operate the reopened base.
1t. Gen. Curtis E. lie May, COM
mander Of the. United States Air
Force in Europe, flew to the Medi-
terranean area Monday for an in
spection tour Of bases and was
scheduled to inspect Mellaha, the
announcement added.
A Foreign Once spokesman said
Britain's approval of reopening the
Mellaha airbase was conditional on
the outcome of current Big Four
discussions on disposal Of the former
Italian colonies.
Last fall a Moscow radio COM
mentator charged that the United
States was planning to establish
naval base in Bengasi, in Cirenaica,
east of Tripolitania.
A Washington dispatch published
in London newspaper last week
said the United States had sounded
out" Britain about establishing a
joint base in Bengasi. This was
denied by the British.
Disclosure that Britain intends to
transfer Palestine troops to Cyprus
came in comment by a Colonial
Office spokesman on dispatch from
the island quoting British officials
as saying they believed political
aspirations of Cypriots must give
way to strategic considerations.
The Cypriots have been agitating