Evening star., 1955-03-15
Knowland Disputes
George, Asks Release
OF Records on YaIta


ey the Assoeiefed Press
Senator Knowland, Republican
of California said today it is
high time" for Congress to get
the facts on the wartime Yalta
conference.
The Senate Republican leader
was asked about the swirling
controversy over a decision by
Secretary of State Dulles yester-
day to let key members of Con-
gress have a private look at the
Yalta papers and not to publish
them generally. Some officials
and Congress members rate the
documents as politically explo-
sive both at home and abroad.
Refuses to Accept Data
Senator George Democrat, Of
Georgia. chairman of the Foreign
Relations Committee. has al
ready said he will refuse to ac-
cept custody Of the secret record.
He said yesterday he would not
be responsible for almost GER
tain leaks, and did not want to
know what is in the record un-
less the public knows too.
''I don't think they would be
leaked any more than many
other documents of varying de-
grees of classification" Senator
Knowland said.
He said it doesn't make
sense" that Congress must get
its information on such sub
ject from the published memoirs
Of such persons as British Prime
Minister Winston Churchill, for
mer United States Secretary of
State Edward Stettinius and Ell
lott Roosevelt, son of the late
Pres dent who, with Mr..
Churchill and Stain. met in the
Crimea in 1914 to plot the course
Of World War II.
Senator Georges decision not
to accept the papers was backed
by Senators Capehart, Republic
can of Indiana, and Sparkman,
Democrat of Alabama.
Secretary Dulles said today the
State Department always has
planned to publish the record of
the Big Three Yalta talks. He
said it is just question of when
maybe soon, maybe months
away.
At his news conference Mr..
Dulles said most of the contents
of the conference record already
is known. Most has been pub
lished, he said, and the docu-
ments themselves have been
shown to members of the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee be-
hind closed doors.
Churchills Role
He was asked whether Church.
Ill. the only living principal at
the Yalta conference, is block
ing publication at the present
time. He declined comment. say
ing he would like to be excused
on that one.
The British foreign Office has
denied that Mr. Churchill is
holding up publication of the
record.
Mr.. Dulles said the papers will
not be sent to the Capitol, as
originally contemplated. unless
memebrs of the six selected COM
mittees or the half dozen Con-
gressional leaders call for them.
The Senate Foreign Relations
Committee saw the papers more
than a year ago when it was
considering the nomination of
Charles Bohlen as Ambassador
to Moscow. Dulles said. Mr.. Boh-
len attended the Yalta meeting
as a translator.
In refusing to accept the Yalta
documents, Senator George said
he would not take the RESPONSE
bility for possible news leaks and
would turn back three copies as
signed to the Senate Foreign Re-
lations Committee which he
heads.
Senator Capehart, a member
of the committee, said in an in
terview he feels "the same way
Senator George does"
II would not accept these doc
uments and take the response
bility Of their getting out" Sem
ator Capehart said.
Sparkman Comments
Senator Sparkman, another
Foreign Relations Committee
member, said he supports Sem
ator Georges position that the
State Department ought to take
the responsibility either for pub
fishing the Yalta papers or keep
ing them secret. He said he
would have no objection to their
publication.
At the Yalta Conference, the
Big Three set the terms for Rus
sian entry into the war against
Japan. In the years since. the
Republicans have accused Pres
ident Franklin D. Roosevelt and
his aides of selling out Chinese
Nationalist interest in Man.