Evening star., 1962-09-23


The risk of war, as measured
by Washington officials. rests
to a great extent on Mr.. Khru-
shchev's judgment of how the
United States viii react to fu-
ture threats and challenges.
In New York this week, Sec
retary Of State Rusk is ex-
pected to try to impress on
cold-war foes and allies alike
that the United States is
deeply upset, angry. even out
ragged about the buildup OF
Communist power backed by
Soviet arms in Cuba.
Public reaction, Mr.. Rusk is
expected to tell other foreign
ministers, must be considered
as a major factor in this sit
uation along with basic United
States security.
Seeks Arms Curb
The United States is trying
hard to get its allies to deSist
from supplying ships for Red
bloc shipments to Cuba. 1t
scored its first significant ad-
vance in this direction Friday
when West Germany an
nounced it would take steps
to limit such employment of
German-owned vessels.
Mr.. Rusk will lunch with So.
Wet Foreign Minister Andrei
Gromyko on Tuesday. They
may meet again before Mr..
Rusk's return here around next
week end for the october 2-3
conference on Cuba of the Or
ganization of American States.
Some United States officials
hope Secretary Rusk and Mr..
Gromyko may be able to give
a new boost to some aspect Of
disarmament negotiations.
The Rusk- -Gromyko sessions
could bring some further
intimation of interest by Mr..
Khrushchev in visiting tn e
United States to attend the
u. N. General Assembly ses-
sions and have a talk with
President Kennedy near the
end Of the year. Mr.. Khrush-
chev recently has hinted to
foreign visitors that he thinks
it might be a good idea if Mr..
Kennedy and he had a per-
sonal discussion.
Highly eplace officials here
say that if Premier Khrush-
chev thinks he can get any con-
cessions on Berlin out of a pri-
vate talk with Mr.. Kennedy he
is badly mistaken. Mr.. Rusk
plans to try to make this clear
to Mr.. Gromyko, it is under
stood.
Under present conditions, the
belief in high quarters here
is that a Kennedy Khrushchev
meeting could be extremely
risky because of the danger OF
direct and personal disagree
ment on such a highly explo-
sive issue between the two lead
ers of the two great powers
But If Mr.. Khrushchev comes
to the United States, President
Kennedy can be expected to
talk with him although so fal
the Kennedy administration is
reported to have avoided giving
Mr.. Khrushchev any encour-
agement.
Khrushchev Committed
The Soviet premier has heav.
lily committed himself to de
something about Berlin. In re-
cent months he has repeatedly
threatened to sign a separate
peace treaty with Communist
East Germany. United States
officials who once hoped hC
would drop this threat now be-
lieve he will go through with it
perhaps by the end of thi,
year.
He might conceive of a tall
with Mr.. Kennedy either as 6
means of winning concession!
or he might do it as a grand
stand play to put the President
on the spot just before Mr.
Khrushchev took the decisive
treaty action.
Also in the case of Cuba, Mr.
Khrushchev has made sweeping
threats. He has talked about
using nuclear rockets against
the United States if it attacked
Cuba. Officials here have
claimed this is cheap propa'
ganda since the United States
as things now stand, has no in
tention of attacking Cuba.
Mr.. Khrushchev's lead. 60
ing back a couple of years, ha'
been followed up by various Of