The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1954-07-06
Tuesday. July s. 1884
BY JOHN N. HIcHrowER

WASHINGTON RHThree Rus
sian diplomats - one of them at
tached to the Soviet delegation at
the United Naions - have been
thrown out of the United States
during the past six months on
charges of spying.
The Russian government, the
State Department claims, has now
retaliated by making espionage
charges against two members of
the US. diplomatic mission at
Moscow and forcing their with
drawal.
The two Americans are military
officers, as were the two Russians
ousted from the embassy here.
The State Department declined
to disclose any of the evidence
against the Soviets, but Press On
ficer Henry Suydam said, 1--WE got
the goods on them and out they
went"
The incident which the State De-
partment announced late yester-
day, after months Of silence on the
custer of the alleged Russian spies,
had more than ordinary signifi-
canoe because of the policy situa-
ton which. is developing among
Russia and the Western Powers.
The Kremlin has been making
a big play for British and French
cooperation in an obvious effort
to place heavy strains on the VISIT
ern alliance. Every evidence of
difficulty between Washington and
Moscow coming at such a time car
ries the risk Of widening Western
differences by emphasizing differ
ing relations with the Soviet Union.
The two Americans whom the
Russians accused of having en-
gagged in Espionage work" are 1t.
Col. Howard L. Felchlin of New
York City and Arlington, Va, who
was assistant military attache at
the Moscow Embassy, and Maj.
Walter Mckinney Of Santa Cruz,
Calf, the assistant air attache.
The Soviets declared them ''per-
soma non grata" or unwelcome on
July 3. The United States rejected
the charge as "baseless" in a note
yesterday, but it informed Russia
they would be withdrawn.
Maj. Mckinney is on vacation
outside Russia and will not return.
Col. Felchlin will leave the Soviet
capital Thursday. He will fly to
E. Bohlen, who is going on a
months leave.
A letter published h the Soviet
trade union newspaper Trud on
March Is accused Felchlin and Nc
Kinney and two other Americans.
Trud said the Americans had left
behind on q train, after a trip to
Vladivostok, an intelligence report
on the main cities and stations
beween Moscow and Khabarovsk.
The us. Embassy at Moscow de-
clined comment at the time.
The three Russians whose custer
from the United States was dis
closed were named by the State
Department as:
Cmdr. Igor A. Amosov, assistant
naval attache, Soviet Embassy,
who was declared personally un-
acceptable last Feb. 3 and left Feb.
8.
Alexander p. Kovlyov, second
secretary Of the Soviet delegation
to the United Nations, who was
asked to leave on Feb. 3 and who
departed Feb. 10.
IT. Col. Leonid E. Pivnev, assist
ant air attache, Soviet Embassy,
ordered on May 20 to leave this
country. He left June 6.
Pivnev's name made the news
papers on at least two occasions
during his stay in the United
States, once when he attended the
1851 Detroit air races and last
April when he attended a meeting
Of the Baltimore chapter of the
Rocket Society to hear
a discussion Of the possibilities of
atomic-powered flight.
The State Department announce
ment, while saying nothing of the
kind of spying 1t accused these
men Of doing, suggested that the
custer Of the American officers
from Moscow was a retaliatory
move by the Russians. It said this
must be true since there "was no
foundation whatsoever" for the
Soviet action against them, and
denounced as "baseless" the
charge that they engaged in spy
ing. In Moscow, Ambassador Bob