Evening star., 1954-09-13
The Kremiin Gets It's Answer


France, Britain and the United States
have given timely demonstration of their
basic unity of purpose in firmly rejecting
the Kremlins proposal for general con-
ference and also for another Big Four
foreign ministers conference = on estab-
fishing new security" system for all of
Europe.
This proposal has been favorite Of the
Soviet leaders for MANY months past, and
they have been harping on it with special
force ever since the Berlin Conference early
this year. Their most recent formal es-
pousal of it has been expressed in their
July "a notes and their August oral COM
municationS to the Western Big Three.
And they have made point Of referring to
It again - while playing once more on
French fears regarding the possibility Of
revived German militarism- the some
what threatful statement they have just
issued to voice elation over the defeat of
the European Defense Community by the
National Assembly in Paris.
However, almost simultaneously with
the issuance Of this Statement-which has
brazenly warned against efforts to substi-
tute for the EDO by rearming West Ger
many within the framework of the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization - France,
Britain and the United States have sent
virtually identical negative notes in reply
to the Kremlin's July "a and August rep
resentations. In effect, what the notes say
is that the Soviet Union, If it really wants
Big Four meeting of any kind, will have
to offer much better token of good faith
than its so-called pan-European security"
proposal.
That proposal, Of course, is a palpable
fraud. For under it, with Red China sitting
in as an observer" all European states on
both sides of the Iron Curtain-"and also
the U. S. A."-would meet together to create
a continent-wide security" system in which
our own country could participate as a
member, but under conditions that would
destroy NATO. In other words, while the
powerful Soviet-satellite military bloc would
remain intact, the Atlantic alliance-if it
were to accept the Russian plan-would
dissolve and dismantle it's defenses in favor
of setup "neutralizing" Germany and
enabling the Kremlin to win domination
over all of Europe on piecemeal basis.
But the Western Big Three, as the Soviet
rulers must have expected them to do have
said an unequivocal mo" to all this as
proposition inviting them - together with
free Europe as whole-to commit suicide.
So, by way of making counter proposal,
they have declared themselves ready to take
part in another full-dress conference with
the men of the Kremlin if the latter will
demonstrate their good faith by agreeing
in advance to do the following, as prelude
to establishing genuine security system:
Q) To end their years-long obstructionism
and sign the Austrian independence treaty,
and (2) to assent to free country wide elec-
tions, internationally supervised, as an
essential first step toward Germany's re-
unidcation.
It need hardly be added that nothing
could seem more unlikely than an af1rnla-
tive Soviet reply. Nevertheless, even though
their latest notes will hardly break the old
deadlock, France, Britain and the United
States have done well to show the Kremlin
and the world at large that they still stand
together-despite their recent differences
on the essentials of mutual defense against
the thing that threatens them separately
and jointly.