Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1949-11-21

One of the oldest and hardeSt-fought OF
the controversial issues before the United
Nations reached definite stage with pas
sage of a General Assembly resolution ask
ing all U. NJ members to impose q COM
plete arms embargo against Albania and
Bulgaria as long as those two Balkan
countries send aid to the Greek guerrillas.
This resolution was coupled with an
Assembly decision to keep indefinitely on
the job the U. N observers who have been
watching the Greek borders and reporting
breaches of neutrality by Greece's neigh
bors in aiding the guerrillas. It is upon
the factual reports Of this special commits
sion that the Assembly's decisions have
been largely based. And 1t is interesting
to note that since Marshal Tito's breach
with Moscow and its satellites, the COM
mission finds little to criticize In Yugo-
slavia's border policy, whereas Romania
has entered the picture as supplementing
Greek guerrilla aid.
The Assembly's decision was, of course,
bitterly fought by the Soviet bloc, which
introduced counter denounc-
ing the commissions reports as pack of
lies, asking its discontinuance, and urging
amnesty for the guerrillas, "free" elections
in Greece, and an end to American "war-
mongering" Intervention In Greek affairs.
This maneuver got nowhere, the final vote
being so to 8, with two abstentions. As
before, therefore, the Soviet bloc found it
self in hopeless minority against a vir-
tually unanimous decision of the non
Communist world.
The significance of that decision should,
OF course, not be exaggerated The As
sembly Is not empowered under the U. N.
Charter to implement its resolutions by
positive action. That is the province of
the Security Council, where Soviet Russia
has an absolute veto. So, in practice, the
arms embargo recommended by the AS
sembly will have little effect, since it can
be anticipated that Russia and its satellites
will furnish all the military equipment
needed by Albania, Bulgaria, and the Greek
guerrilas whom they harbor and assist.
The fact that actual lighting In Greece has
virtually ceased does not mean that the
threat Of renewed civil war has been re-
moved, Greek guerrilla formations remain
intact in both Albania and Bulgaria, ready
to 60 into action again Whenever Moscow
deems thataits interests will be thereby
served.
Indeed, one Of the reasons for the guer-
rilla retreat from Greek soil is supposed to
be the military value of these ar-hard-
ened Communists as potential threat
against rebellious Yugoslavia. The split
between Belgrade and Moscow has
broadened the Balkan problem, easing 1t
in Greece, but at the same time intensity
ing its explosive possibilities, since an open
conflict between Yugoslavia and the Soviet
block could hardly be localized as the
Greek civil war has BEEN
Despite its practical limitations, however,
the Assembly's Balkan resolution is con-
structiye and helpful IT'S denunciation of
aid to the Greek guerrnlas as contrary to
the U. N. Charter and endangerfhg inter-
national peace places the responsibility
specifically on Albania and Bulgaria, and
implicitly on their Soviet hacker Once
more, the opinion Of the civilized world has
been modified against the aggressive poll
cies OF the Soviet bloc. Such moral isola-
ton NAV well give pause to Moscow