Evening star., 1950-09-06
Presence Of Russian
In Plane Significant,
Acheson Declares

Secretary of State Acheson said
today the important thing in the
red star plane incident is that q
Russian officer was engaged in an
operation menacing United Ma
tions naval forces in Korean
waters.
He was asked at a news con-
ference If he had any clue as tc
the significance of the incident in
which plane bearing a red star
Identification mark opened fire on
a United Nations fighter patrol
Monday and was shot down.
The body of one of the mem
bers of the bomber crew was
picked up by United Nations de-
stroyer and identified by papers
he carried as a Soviet lieutenant.
Mr.. Acheson said the plane may
or may not have been one belong
ing at this time to Russia. But
the significant thing, he added, is
that a Soviet officer was in the
plane which proceeded in a men
acing manner toward a United
Nations naval formation.
Cites u. N. Resolutions.
Why the Russian officer was
there is something he does not
know, Mr.. Acheson said.
He emphasized that the Incl
dent brings out the need for all
members of the United Nations
to comply with Security Council
resolutions against aiding the
North Korean aggressors.
MIR. Acheson did not say whether
United States ships and planes
were involved in the incident. The
whole thing will be handled
through the United Nations, he
added. Since the naval forces
and fighter planes involved were
operating under the United Ma
tions flag. he said, it would not
be appropriate for any individual
nation to take up the matter with
Russia directly.
Answers Red Charges.
Charges that the United Nations
forces in Korea are bombing and
killing defenseless civilians were
branded by Mr.. Acheson as Com
munist "slander."
Such charges have been made
repeatedly in the United Nations
Security Council by Russia's Jacob
A. Malik.
Mr.. Acheson said the Islander"
is one of "all manner of tricks"
being used by the aggressor in Ko-
rea to try to divert the attention
of the world from his crime"
Meantime. American caution
and Soviet comparative mildness
so far in handling the "red star"
plane incident in the United Ma
tions Security Council encouraged
hope today that it may not have
severe repercussions.
Austin Tells of Incident.
United States Delegate Warren
r. Austin told the Council yester-
day that a Russian lieutenant was
q member of the crew of a bomber
that was shot down in Korean
waters by a United Nations fighter
patrol after it had opened fire on
the fighters. 4
Mr.. Malik made no immediate
reply, but an hour later called
Mr.. Austin's statement zone Of a
series of provocatior1s."
Mr. Austin did not charge. and
Mr.. Malik did not admit that the
plane shot down was Soviet
bomber. Mr.. Austin said the
plane was identified only by
bearing red star"
Malik's Reference Mild.
Compared to the harsh words
he used in a lengthy denunciation
of what he called American Gag
gression" in Korea, Mr.. Malik's
reference to the plane incident
was mild and extremely brief.
The Soviet delegate said:
with regard to the statement
by the representative of the Unit
ed States, I can say that that was
one of a series of provocations of
the warmongers, Gen. Macarthur
and the United States State De-
partment, which has been espe-
cially arranged for this meeting of
the Security Council, where the
resolution of the United States
delegation leading to the expan-
sion of the Korean conflict is to
be discussed and which meeting of
the Security Council is to take up
also the Soviet Union draft reso-
luton concerning the peaceful
settlement of the Korean question.
"As the place for this provoca-
ton, the sea was chosen in order
to make it easier to conceal the
rather sharp corners of the whole
matter"
Austin Lacks Added Data.
Mr.. Austin said the United
States had no more information
about the incident than contained
~ NAE 81