MOSCOW TALKS

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 67, Issue 93, 30 January 1947, Page 3

MOSCOW TALKS

TOO MANY REPORTERS * FACILITIES WHOLLY INADEQUATE? (Special Correspondent N.Z.P.A.) (Rec. 10.45 a.m.) LONDON, .Tan. 29. j The diplomatic correspondent of the “Daily Telegraph” says the Soviet Government has expressed concern about the size of the projected British and American delegations to the Moscow conference of Foreign Ministers, and is now endeavouring l to limit the number of Anglo-American newspaper correspondents to 15 each.

The reason given is lack of hotel accommodation and limited communication facilities in Moscow.

Hitherto it had been suggested that at least 50 British correspondents, in addition to a number representing the Dominions, would go to Moscow to cover the conference. When it was first announced that the conference would be held in Moscow, correspondents with experience of Russian conditions suggested that the Soviet would not be able to accommodate newspapermen on the same scale as it did in France during th’e Paris conference.

During the Paris meeting, there were about 300 regular correspondents in Paris, but about 1500 were attached to the conference from time to time. One of the communication difficulties is the lack of direct newspaper radio transmission from Moscow to the rest of the world. When the Soviet applied for the conference, Mr J. F. Byrnes asked whether publicity facilities, equal to those in London, New York or Paris, would be avail-, able and was given an assurance by Mr Molotov that there would be no limitation.