Evening star., 1951-09-09
The San Francisco Decision


Yesterday morning, prior to the signing
ceremony, Andrei Gromyko with his usual grim
look staged press conference at which he
announced that the Soviet Union, together with
its Czech and Polish puppets had "disassoci-
ated" itself from the historic San Francisco
meeting on the Japanese settlement. He then
went on to add that he was issuing q warning
that those who impose the peace treaty here"
must stand responsible for 1t before the eyes
of the world"
This thinly yelled threat this pretentious
warning" can best be appreciated when read
within the context of the Soviet propaganda
line. The line-an old one which is being en-
phaSized at the moment with great virulence by
the Moscow-Peiping press and radios that the
japanese treaty, far from being an instrument
for peace is really Washington alliance
cooked up by American "imperialists" for the
purpose of unleashing new war of enslavement
against Red China and Asia in general, including
Russia.
The menacng implications of this colossal
lie have been slyy stressed, moreover by indirect
but nonetheless threatfu references to the exist
ence of the 30-year Sino-Soviet pact. Under
that pact--which the Kremlin, in one of history's
worst acts of bad faith, worked out in 1949 with
the Mao Tze-tung regime to replace similar
3O-year treaty that it had signed with the Chi
nese NationalistS in 1945-Red China and the
Soviet Union are pledged to help each other
militarily in case either faces attack by Japan
or any country allied with Japan. Accordingly,
in view of the fact that Communist propaganda
has been drawing attention to this agreement
while at the same time violently assailing the
japanese treaty as Tokyo Washington alliance
for aggression, onlinouS meanings-the possi-
bility of Red counteraction in Korea, for example
can be read into the warning" just uttered
by Gromyko.
But the warning" whether forerunner Of
retaliatory action or just an empty buf, has been
treated almost with contempt-and 1t certainly
deserves contempt-at San Francisco OF the 81
participating nations, including Japan, total OF
40 have signed the treaty, the sole non-signers
being the Russians and the satellite Poles and
Czechs Several members of this vast majority
have been sharply critical of certain aspects OF
the settlement, but they nevertheless have ap
proved it as the best possible compromise in the
kind of world we have. They have approved 1t
not least of all because of firm conviction that
it will serve to promote peace in the Pacific area
by righting the balance Of power over there
righting it in way that will not leave the Jap
anese nation as defenSeleSS vacuum inviting
the dominance seeking Red totalitarians to come
in and take over whenever they think the time
ripe for further conquest,
1t is primarily Tor this reason, OF course, tnat
the Russian Communists have so bitterly opposed
the Japanese treaty. For the treaty-together
with the bilatera post-occupation security agree
ment between us and Tokyo-is very definitely
designed to enable Japan, in concert with the
United States and like-minded powers to protect
itself against attack and to contribute to the
collective defense of the free Pacific area. In
short it is designed to uphold peace in that part
of the world by deterring Soviet aggression.
What remains to be seen now is whether the
Russians can be deferred. The Gromyko warn
ing" suggests that they may yet answer the San
Francisco decision with physical violence. If
they do, however they will be flying in the face
of an overwhelming majority of nations whose
solidarity in this instance not only represents
major diplomatic defeat for the Soviet dictator
ship, but also serves notice on that dictatorship
to be very careful about how it reacts Certainly,
as Japan moves forward today toward full inde-
pendence, the free world is in mood to tolerate
any additional Red gangsterism.