U.S. PLANS FOR GREECE AND TURKEY

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25134, 15 March 1947, Page 9

U.S. PLANS FOR GREECE AND TURKEY

“Action Imperative Before March 31” STEPS BY COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS (N.Z. Press Association— Copyright) (Rec. 7 p.m.) WASHINGTON, March 14 . The Republican Policy Committee of the United States o^ ere, i da.ly sessions of the Senate to speed action by March 31, on legislation authorising aid to Greece and Turkey, as well as other bills. The chairman (Senator R. A. Taft) said that the decision was made because it was imperative that Congress should act on the proposed loans to Greece and Turkey before March 31. The Senate's Foreign Relations Committee held a closed meeting, which was attended by military and foreign policy leaders, including the Acting-Secretary of State (Mr Dean Acheson), the Secretary of War (Mr Robert Patterson), and the Secretary of the Navy (Mr James Forrestal). The chairman (Senator A. H. Vandenberg) said afterwards that the Administration would be urged to give the people all essential information of Mr Truman’s programme for halting the spread of Communism. Senator Vandenberg predicted that Congress would support Mr Truman m blocking Communist aggression, but would judge for itself the proper methods and details of carrying out such a policy. He advocated public hearings.

EFFECT ON UNITED NATIONS

Asked whether American aid in Greece and Turkey might not result in the eventual destruction of the United Nations, Senator Vandenberg said that the United Nations was never set up as a relief organisation. It had no resources and it was never expected to have resources for such purposes. To deal with applications for relief the General Assembly would have to be convened to draw up new proce-

dures which would be totally foreign to those for which the organisation was formed—to keep the peace. The United Nations military force was not established, and even if it were its use was subject to “the speculation of action by the Security Council” (a reference to the veto power). Senator Vandenberg said that the difficulty of finding common ground with Russia had made it impossible, so far, to agree on the United Nations military force.

PRESS COMMENT ON POLICY

The “New York Times,” in a leading article, says: “The first response to Mr Truman’s statement has been encouraging, with most of the comment in Congress, the American press, and foreign capitals strongly supporting his position.” Discussing questions raised about the new policy, the leading article says the policy is not “a declaration of war” against Russia, but is intended to prevent war. “It is not a crusade to overthrow Communism, but is direoted against Mhe imposition of totalitarian regimes by coercion,” says the “New York Times.” “It does not undermine the United Nations, but is designed to defend the Charter in circumstances so urgent that the United Nations is unable to act either effectively or in time.”

The New York “Herald-Tribune,” in a leading article, says: “The new policy is a challenge to test the relative effectiveness, politically, economi-, cally, and socially, of the Russian and the Western systems. There is no more danger of war with Russia than there was before Mr Truman’s message was delivered. Indeed, there is probably a good deal less.” It adds: “We must work constantly to ameliorate conditijns in places like Greece, Spain, Argentina, and China if we are to prove the validity of Western capitalist democracy.”

Eventual War Predicted “£ven more important than the Greek crisis is the American crisis,” says “PM.” in a leading article commenting on President Truman’s speech. It adds: “Mr Truman’s plea for aid for the Greek and Turkish Governments. if followed, will make America the underwriter of every unstable government in the world which is capable of going Communist. “Mr Truman asks us to engage in a course which can only mean unioresee- * able military adventures and eventu-

&ly a third world war. It is not ‘alternative ways of life’ that he is concerned with. Let him strip himself of that cant. He is concerned with the world struggle for power. “Mr Truman is really talking about holding Russia’s power strictly within its present limits, even if it means war.”

The Washington “Post,” in a leading article, says that “Greece and Turkey must be shored up against aggression which, judging from the President’s statement, is bound to succeed unless we act.”

The New York Communist paper, “Daily Worker,” says: “Mr Truman’s demand that America take over Greece and Turkey marks a day of national shame for our country. Mr Truman is selling the American people the ‘fool’s goal of empire.’ In complete abandonment of President Roosevelt’s vision of a stable post-war peace, we are being swindled into rushing American dollars and American ammunition to save a rotten and hated Greek monarchy, and to do this we will have to move in on Greece and make a Quisling colony out of it, drowning in blood the democratic aspirations of the Greek people.” The New York “World-Telegram,” in a leading article, while describing Mr Trumans speech as “brave and admirably candid,” adds that the proposal should be debated in Congress and the country before a decision is made. The answer to the proposal may “for better or worse decide our own ultimate destiny as a free people.” The New York “Post” says that Congress cannot refuse to grant the aid that the President has recommended and that that, on the facts, is its duty. The New York “Sun” says: “If the United States people aie to walk a new road, only the beginning of which is open to view, their representatives in Congress are certain to insist upon a fuller disclosure of how long a march is proposed, and what is the stopping place if any.”

REACTION IN TURKEY AND CHINA

The Istanbul correspondent of the Associated Press quotes Recep Peker, the Prime Minister of Turkey, as saying: “Trouble in Greece and Turkey could spread like a microbe.” He added that Turkey was in a serious economic position because the burden of maintaining a large army for national defence took half the country’s income. Turkey conceded that Britain’s call to America for help in time of need was a noble and correct action. Mr Truman had not confined himself only to an understanding of world-wide strategy, but also had been inspired by a realistic and humanitarian point of view. “The deep influence of the ideas

asserted will reach beyond the Mediterranean. the Middle East, and the Near East,” he said.

The correspondent of the United Press in Nanking reports that the Chinese Minister of Information (Mr Peng Heueh-Pei) described Mr Truman’s message as “heartening news,” because it showed a discerning understanding of the causes of the economic crises wrought in countries which had been victims of destruction and rebellion.

Mr Peng interpreted Mr Truman’s request as “the beginning of an American policy to support the frde peoples who are resisting armed minorities.”