Evening star., 1952-07-13

Secretary of State Dean Ache
son has Just returned from an
ostensi6ly genial interlude in
his round of crisis engagements
"a six-day visit to the huge
South American republic of
Brazil. 1t may have been genial.
but it was no clambake.
In seven days the Secretary
visited the cities of Recife, Rio
de Janeiro and Sac Paulo. made
approximately "a official ap-
pearances. delivered at least
four major speeches. Between
whileS, he conferred extensively
with President Getulio Vargas.
Brazil's Foreign. Finance and
War Ministers and with quite a
few of the republics congress
sional. military and business
leaders.
Acheson Chorm
Steadily throughout the pro-
ceedings the Acheson charm
was kept on tap behind the ami
ably bristling mustache and the
cloudless diplomatic smile. For
the Secretary was on a wooing--
or at least a rewooing-expe-
dition. Last winter American
Brazilian relations were close
to their wobbliest low OF the
postwar period. Mr.. Acheson's
job, as he and his advisers con-
ceived 1t, was to firm them up
again both for the sake of closer
working ties with Latin Ameri-
cas- strongest power and as a
brace to the somewhat sagging
overall system Of inter-Ameri-
can relations.
The reasons for seeking to
rebuild American Brazilian
friendship to a new high are
fairly obvious. The big Portu-
guese speaking republic Of
more than so million people has.
next to the United States, the
strongest military potential in
the Western Hemisphere, If not
the most effective defensive
power right now. 1t has almost
limitless economic capacity for
supplying the free world with
strategic materials and many
essential peacetime commodities.
In the inter-American bal
ances, Brazil has functioned as
a constitutional democracy since
1945. and to this extent tends to
counteract a rising tide of die
tatorships among the lesser re-
publics. A. more active UNDER
standing with the United States,
then. is calculated to produce
at least increased moral sup
port for anti-dictatorial forces
in Latin-American politics else
where.
Notionolists and NeutroIists
In Brazil, too. nationalist,
"neutralist" and. to some degree,
underground Communist move
ments have thrived for several
years on the growing rift in the
country's relations with WASH
ington. Early in January, for
instance, pressure from ma
tionalist politicians led Presi-
dent Vargas to issue a decree
sharply curtailing the rights of
American corporations and in
vestors in Brazil to transmit
profits to the United States in
dollars.
Meanwhile, Communist and
fellow-traveling "neutralist" or
ganizations claim, probably with
no more than quadruple exag-
geration, that As million Brazil
ians have signed Communist
peace front petitions. Again,
during the spring, apparently
pro-Communist groups in the
officers corps of the army be-
gan sniping at the United Ma
tionS and the Korean war in
the pages Of Revista Militar, Of
fetal organ Of the principal
armed services organization in
the republic.
Hefty endorsements
All these developments gave
the Acheson mission to Brazil a
considerable spur of urgency. At
the same time, the Secretary
had to conduct his goodwill re-
storing operations under hefty
embarraSSmentS.
Brazil's main postwar griev-
ance against the United States
has been that, although the re-
public sent q combat army to
the Italian front in 1944-5, the
United States since then has
poured scores of times more dol
lars into economic and military
aid for European and Asiatic al
lies, and even former enemies,
than 1t has spent on furthering