Evening star., 1950-07-21
The Menace in the Balkans

The United Nations Special Committee on the
Balkans has issued q timely warning against the
possibility of near-future aggression in that
crucial part of the world aggression taking the
form of direct armed attack on either Greece
or Yugoslavia or both. Needless to say, coming
on top of the Korean crisis, any such develop
ment could easily lead to a general war;
AS far as Yugoslavia is concerned, the Tito
regme-ever since it's break with Moscow two
years ago-has been under ceaselesS attack from
the Kremlin-led Cominform. Up to now, that
attack has been limited to economic pressures
and propaganda barrages depicting the "hereti-
cal" Communist dictatorship in Belgrade as a tool
of Wall Street and the Anglo-American "imper-
alists" The situation, 1t is true, may not go be-
yond that kind of warfare but within recent
weeks the Soviet satellite armies Of Romania,
Bulgaria and Hungary have been maneuvering in
manner that lends extra force to the U. N.
committees warning.
AS for Greece, the warning places particular
emphasis on the fact that the Cominform publ-
cation, in an article vilifying what it calls the
"Athens-Belgrade Axis" has given great pro-
minence to the vicious falSehood that the United
States and Britain are fomenting an attack by
Greek armed forces on Bulgaria and Albania.
The U. N. Balkan group has commented on this
with these words: "Since current history shows
aganda accusing the intended victim of ag
gressve intention, the special committee cannot
disregard the possibility that such statements
might constitute an attempt to justify in ad-
vance aggressive actions Of some kind"
If there are such actions, of course, then we
will see the outbreak of another hot war that
will be even more difficult to localize-far more
dificult-than the one in Korea. For Greece
and Yugoslavia occupy positions that are Of vital
strategic significance to the security of the entire
free world, especially the West. Further than
that, in addition to our Greek commitments our
own Nation-with 5000 troops standing guard
with an equal number of British and Yugoslav
troops in the international zone of Trieste
would find itself in the immediate vicinity of any
armed satellite attack on Tito. #G IL
In this connection, it may be more than a
little significant that the Kremlin within recent
days. has repeated its demand that Britain and
the United States withdraw from TrieSte-a
demand that ignores our right and duty to be
there; demand, moreover, that has been ac-
companied by the truth butchering charge that
we have converted the territory into a great
Anglo-Amercan base to be used as Spring
board" for military aggression against the peace
and security of Europe This Soviet line of at
tack, coupled with other Balkan developments,
certainly points to a real potential menace in
that region. s.H....
In such circumstances it is obvious that the
United States and all other free nations must
remain wide-awake, on kind of around the
clock alert, to what can happen at points nearer
to us than Korea. 1t is not for nothing that the
President, in an indirect warning to the Kremlin,
has declared that any new outbreak of aggression
might well strain to the breaking point the
fabric of world peace" That fabric is dangerously
thin, Another riD In it. in a Y1lace like the
Balkans, could set off global war