Evening star., 1948-02-08
By Gould Lincoln

rapidly becoming the truman ad-
ministration's No. / trouble spot.
Overtures are reported to have been
made to Republican members of
Congress for aid in the situation,
but have been received coldly. The
Republican attitude has been that
this is President Truman's parti-
cular baby and he will have to deal
with it.
AS the Republicans see it, partition,
If it is be carried out, is a United
Nations matter entirely. They will
never agree to unilateral action on
the part of the United States Gov
ernment to police the partitipning.
They will not agree, either, to lift
ing the. embargo on shipment Of
arms to Palestine. That, too, they
say, is a matter for the United Ma
tions to worry about. They are deaf
to pleas that only from the United
States can the Palestine Jews get
the arms and ammunition they re-
quire.
The Palestine question involves
politics-the Jewish vote in. New
York-and the question of Near
East oil supplies. The oil Is con-
trolled by the Arab nations, which
violently oppose the partition of a
country which they insist Is Arab
by tradition.
COP Affected by Issue.
The political issue-and the
humanitarian has been potent not
only with President Truman but also
with Republican candidates for the
presidential nomination. Both
Gov. Dewey of New York and Sena-
tor Taft of Ohio for example were
quick to approve the Palestine par
tition plan worked out by United
Nations commission.
On the other hand, interest in
Near East oil production and the
threat of war involving the Arab
nations, supported by Moslems
elsewhere, are factors giving great
concern.
The British are moving out Of
Palestine, over which Britain has
held a mandate since World War I,
this spring, bringing an early
showdown in the partition plans.
The Security Council of the United
Nations, threatened with armed
resistance by the Arabs, has yet
to organize forces to police parti-
tioning of the country into Jewish
and Arab states.
The part that Communist Russia
is playing and may play in the
future Near East is another angle
which is giving concern. A report
on Palestine and the Near East
made public last night by Repre-
sentatives Francis P Bolton OF Ohio
and Morrow of New Hampshire, two
Republicans, who recently visited
that area, discusses in much detail
the Palestine problem.
Tops With Arabs Year Ago.
"a year ago." they reported, mo
country in the world had the friend
ship of the Arabs as we did. A year
ago we we're tops in this link area,
this bridge between the east and
west. Where shall we find our
selves from here out? King 1bn
Saud has given no indication that
he intends to sever the very friendly
and constructive relations between
our two countries and his influence
is far reaching. Perhaps his atti-
tude is partly due to the fact that
of all the heads of government In.
the area this king most clearly sees
the menaces of the Kremlin in
broad perspective, and as devout
son of the prophet recognizes the
fundamental danger.
"The sinister possibilities behind
the momentary agreement between
the United States and the Soviet in
the United Nations plan to partition
Palestine are probably troubling
him as much, if net more, than they
are troubling others. Indeed. the
Arabs on the peninsula have no
illusions over the meaning OF the
U. S. S. r. to partition. If through
the United Nations partition plan
Moscow obtains the opportunity
consequent upon her agreement, to
set up cells of destruction within
Arabia, then indeed will a dark
shadow spread across the sunny
path of a friendship with us which
the Arabs as keenly desire as do
we, and to which both OF us have
become accustomed"
The report charges that the Com
munists already are active in Pales-
tine. "Indentification of the Stern
gang" the report comments with
any particular group was difficult
but the concensus of opinion was
that they work with the Commu-
nists and fellow travellers"
Further, the report charges that
Soviet propaganda against the
United States Is widespread in the
nations of the Near East, using the
radio and such newspapers as exist.
Big U. S. Oil Use Cited.
Discussing the oil of the Near
East, the report calls attention to
the fact that the United States is
using more oil than ever before
and that European recovery re-
1uires a great increase in European
consumption. The four major
sources of oil supply are the United
States, South America, Russia and
the Near East. The fields of the
Near East contain approximately
as much oil as all
the others in the world.
American oil companies have
interest in this Near
East oil. The Arabian-American
Oil Co. has five oil fields. The