Evening star., 1949-12-27
Jap Germ War Aimed
|At j. :. and Britain,
Soviet Says in Trial
BY the Associated Press

MOSCOW, Dec. 27.-Testimony
at the trial of Japanese war pris.
oners as carried by the Soviet
press today gave the impression
that the United States and Britain
were to be targets Of a germ wal
attack.
Newspaper accounts Of the tria.
quoted Japenese prisoners as say.
ing the scheme had progressed te
the point where American pris.
oners were sent to special bacteris
plants TO be experimental on a.
human guinea pigs.
(In Tokyo, Gen. MacArthur's
headquarters said there are no
4 records of the Japanese having
experimental with germs on
American prisoners. AS far as
headquarters knew the Japa-
nese had never been accused by
any Of the Americans held at
Mukden. scene of the alleged
experiment, Of using them as
germ-warfare guinea pigs.
(Old United States Army In
telligence reports in 1946, how
ever, disclosed that the Japa-
nese had conducted germ -weap-
on experiments on animals,
but there was no evidence they
ever had experimental on hui
man beings or ever had used
the weapons in actual warfare.
(Some observers believe the
trial is being used by Russia as
an answer to recent Japanese
and American occupation de-
mands for the release of Japa-
nese war prisoners she is still
holding. Russia claims to be
holding 10000 Japanese as war
criminals but Japanese and
American estimates place the
figure at nearly 350,000.)
Trial Held at Khabarovsk.
The trial Of IL Japanese army
officers was reported proceeding
at Khabarovsk, Siberia.
BY injecting their American
prisoners with certain germs, the
japanese were quoted as saying
they sought to determine how
Anglo Saxons would react to var
ious diseases and plaques.
The accounts also said the JAP
anese experimental with their
American victims to find out from
what diseases they were immune
The plan was. the newspapers
said, to find out what kind Of germs
would be best to use in a bacteria
Of the United States and
Britain by the wholesale use OF
germs against the civilian popula-
tions.
The Japanese were also said to
have given details how these germs
could be dropped by airplanes
The accused officers related, the
newspapers said, how special air.
plane groups became part of the
germ warfare plan.
The accounts said Gen. Otozoc
Yamada, commander In chief OF
the Kwantung army which occu-
pied Manchuria. confirmed the
germ plans.
The details Of the trial are being
given full publicity by the Soviet
press and radio. The accounts give
the impression to the populace
that the Soviet army saved the
United States and Britain from
the horrors Of air borne germs.
The correspondent Of the Com
munist newspaper Pravda. under
a Khabarovsk dateline, said the
United States authorities die
everything possible at the Tokyo
war criminal trial to minimize the
guilt" Of the accused.
"Only portion Of the evil do
ings of the Japanese military were
revealed at the Tokyo trial." he
wrote. He said American author.
tiles undertook by all means pos.
sible to soften the guilt OF Jap.
anese war criminals.
The Pravda correspondent sale
the inhumanity and cruelty Of the
japanese germ warfare plans "car
only be compared with the evil do.
ings Of the Hitlerite executioner.
at Maidenek and Oswiecim." These
were two Eastern European con-
centration camps used by the Nazis
to execute and torture prisoners