The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1954-06-11
Reds Act While Others Talk
BY JOHN NJ HIcHroWER

oy JOHN M hICHTOWEK
WASHINGTON R-U. S. offici.
ais are deeply concerned over the
political crisis developing in the
French government. They fear it
will have a further paralyzing eff.
feet on Allied efforts to halt the
Communists in Southeast Asia.
For the fact which stands out
in connection with the diplomatic
military campaign which the Com
munists are relentlessly pressing
is this: while the Allies are held
to the council table at Geneva,
Paris and generally debate the
conditions for action on .Indochina
the Red high command gives ev-
cry evidence of pressing for de-
cision on the battlefield.
One Western diplomat put it this
way: There has been a lot of
discussion between the United
States and France about training
Vietnamese troops, but by the time
they get it all settled the Vietna-
mese may not be there to train
any more"
French authorities here report
that no one can be sure when the
Communist forces of Ho Chi Mini,
following up their triumph at Diem
Bien Phu a few weeks ago, will
launch a big attack to take the
Red River delta, the key city of
Hanoi and its port, Haiphong.
Both American and French lead
ers- agree the Reds can make the
drive pretty much on their own
timing. The French assert they
will run into a terrific fight.
President Eisenhower told his
news conference yesterday that the
French and native forces could
use some outside help in fighting
for Hanoi but he offered no sign
that the United States was going
to provide such help in the way
of combat support. It is already
providing arms and equipment.
ALI the evidence indicates there
is no American plan to intervene
with armed forces in behalf of the
defense of Hanoi.
Efforts to arrange some kind of
base for longer term operations
against the spread Of Communist
control in Southeast Asia are vir-
tually paralyzed.
It is in this connection the
French government vote of con-
fidence tomorrow is of great sig
nificance.
If the Laniel regime is over
thrown, it will remain as a care
takre government until a new ad-
ministration is formed. But a care
taker government can carry on
only day-to-day operations. 1t can
not make basic policy decisions.
Thus, in that situation, the French
delegation at Geneva presumably
would be unable either to make an
armistice or to quit the confer
ence. France could carry on the
war but questions of vital import
ance concerned with such ques-
tons as reinforcement would be
frozen.
Allied efforts, at least from the
American point of view. have been
largely frozen for several weeks
already. The French crisis makes
bad matter worse. II would not
be helped very much even if Laniel
sweeps through with a narrow vote
of confidence. That would give him
a poor margin Of authority on
which to work.
The box in which the Allies are
trapped for the moment is roughly
this:
l. The British government has
committed itself to work for peace
in Indochina and to make no COM
mitment on action there until
peace hopes are exhausted.
2. French Foreign Minister
Georges Bidault has openly ex-
pressed Encouragement at Red
policies at Geneva, but if Bidault
IS on the way out his ideas would