Evening star., 1951-09-13
BY the Associated Press

BELGRADE, Yugoslavia, Sept.
13.-Premier- Marshal Tito is har-
vesting new crop Of worries
this fall in the form of sharply
increased border hostility, frontier
shootings and spy activities by his
prof. Russian neighbors.
In the past seven months there
have been 837 border incidents
along Yugoslavia's frontier with
Albania. Bulgaria, Romania and
Hungary. This is nearly one-third
of the total for the entire period
since Tito's break with the Comm
form in June, 1948.
The increased tempo of the
Cominform's border pressure -
particularly in the last 10 days.
has raised the question: Do Russia
and her puppet states mean busi-
ness this time? Are the new in
cidents a prelude to invasion?
No one knows the answer for
certain except the Kremlin, and
it isn't talking.
Short Step From War.
Yugoslavia and the Cominform
countries appeared only a short
step from actual war as they gath
cred in late fall crops-bringing
to mind the old Balkan adage
that wars begin when crops are
in"
Trade between Yugoslavia and
her Eastern neighbors ended
completely more than a year and
a half ago.
Diplomatic relations have been
reduced to exchanges of insults,
accusations and formal notes
protesting various incidents
These notes usually are rejected.
denied or calmly ignored.
Diplomatic staffs-both those
maintained by the Cominform
countries here and those repre-
senting YugoSlavia in the Com
inform capitals-have been re-
duced to skeleton size. They are
under constant surveillance by the
security police in each country.
Their chief function now is to
gather what information they
can about the political, economic
and military affairs in the coun-
try Their source of information
lis limited largely to what they
can read in newspapers.
All along Yugoslavia'S twisting
eastern and southern frontiers,
both sides have posted countless
Thousands of border guards.
In the danger spots, such as the
major travel routes across the
frontiers. barbed wire entangle-
ments, pillboxes, recently dug
trenches and outlook towers en-
phasize the border tension.
Behind border outposts are
concentrated heavy units Of sea-
soned troops. On the Yugoslav
side they probably are most num-
erous on the Bulgarian border.
since military men long have re-
garded that as the chief danger
spot
Refugees from iron curtain
countries tell of widespread prep
arations which have the earmarkS
of preparations for attack-or at
least of measures to furnish that
impression.
CiviIianS Evacuated
These reports range from the
wholesale evacuation of civilians
from an area 20 miles deep in
Bulgaria and Romania to wide
spread activity by Russians direct.
ing military training and the con-
Istruction of military establish
Iments, such as a new air base near
Sofia.
Despite controls, a two-way
traffic of refugees and spies flows
across the border. Yugoslavia
naturally asserts a top-heavy per-
Icentage of that traffic has been
coming in her direction. COMM
form propaganda says just the
contrary.
The outcome may well depend
on these three factors:
/. The Kremlin's decision on
whether an invasion of Yugoslavia
would touch off World War III.
2. How soon and how much
military aid Yugoslavia can get
from the West,