Evening star., 1950-09-11
Appeasement Of Reds
In China Would Be
Top Campaign Issue
Administration Believed
Planning Recognition Of
Peipine Seat at U. N.
By David Laurence

Peipine Seat at U. N.
By David Laurence
Appeasement Of communism in
China and the utter senselessnesS
Of the war In Korea II appease-
ment is now ordered will be the
prime issue in the coming Con-
Rressional campaign.
The Midwest Democratic con-
ference, by accusing certain Re
publicans Of wanting war with
Communist China, has let the cat
out Of the bag. The recognition OF
Communist China and its admis-
sion to q seat in the United Ma
tions are evidently to be the crown
ing climax of the Democratic ad-
ministration's effort to pin the re-
sponsibility for war" on their
political opponents and to take to
themselves the credit for main
tanning peace"
The Republicans will not take
that sort of charge lying down.
They will ask why the admins
tration went into Korea at all at
a cost already of about 5000 cas-
ualties If it was intended to give
Communist Russia, Communist
China and Communist North
Korea their way anyhow in the
Far East.
The administration maneuvers
are by no means sure-footed even
from a political standpoint. The
purport of the television interview
by Secretary of State Acheson
over the Columbia Broadcasting
System is that the position of the
United States with respect to For
moSa is one Of military weakness
and that the proposal to neutral
ize" the island is based on the
fear that we cannot defend 1t.
Doesn't Respect Weakness.
The Communist world does not
respect weakness, as has been ad-
mitted by the secretary himself.
Hence, 1t is difficult to understand
the purpose he had in emphasiz-
ing our military weakness. He said:
when it was decided by the
President that we would lend our
support. and full support, to the
United Nations in the Korean de-
Tense you can see how important
it was that, having taken most of
our troops out of Japan and
brought UP troops from Okinawa
and brought our fleet up from the
Philippines and placed it to the
north, Formosa should be neutral
ized and should not be point of
danger upon the left flank of the
whole United Nations position.
"And, therefore, the President
neutralized it by saying that the
Seventh Fleet would prevent any
attack upon Formosa and Formosa
should not make any attack upon
the mainland. There was fair
proposition, and it was meant to
work both, ways-and it does work
both ways. The President also
pointed out that what he has said
has nothing to do with foreclosing
the political decisions on the fu-t
ture of Formosa. These should be
made by peaceful means and he
has stressed over and over again
that our sole long-range desire
about Formosa is that its future
should be decided by peaceful ne
gotiation and settlement, and not
by force"
Deal With Red China?
Does this "fair proposition"
mean q deal with Communist
China whereby, if she accepts the
facts about our military weakness
and doesn't attack Formosa, she
is to be rewarded with admission
to the U. N. and recognition as
well as perhaps later the island
Of Formosa itself? Was Gen. Mac
Arthur right after all In warning
against "appeasement" in the Far
East? Is this the way to create
"areas of strength" as Mr.. Ache
son phrases It so often?
Who, to be sure, created the
military weakness Of the United
States in the Far East and who
abolished the fleet in being" 50
far as the Pacific was concerned?
Wv is it necessary in 1850 to
make a deal on Formosa because
of lack of adequate naval forces
In commission to protect an island
entirely surrounded by deep
water when only five years ago
the United States had the largest
navy the world had ever known?
The Republicans cannot be pre-
vented in the coming campaign
from asking pertinent questions
concerning the very military weak
ness which apparently is now die
tating our appeasment policies.
Chamberlain at Munich in 1888
appeased Hitler to gain time but
war was not thereby avoided.
America by appeasing Stain
with q Far Eastern Munich will
gain time but may lose the re-
spect of Asiatic peoples, to say
nothing Of the respect of the
peoples Of Europe and the rest of
: the world.
It looks like a dangerous ad-
venture born Of military weakness
and attributable to our bungling
policies in falling to allocate
wisely the $50 billion we spent for
defense in the last five years. The
new policy of appeasment is pre-
sumably designed to deter ag-
gression. It could encourage and
lead to further aggression by an
arrogant communism.