FRENCH MISSION EXPELLED

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25364, 11 December 1947, Page 7

FRENCH MISSION EXPELLED

SOVIET DECISION

TRADE TALKS ALSO TO BE ENDED LONDON, December 9. In a Note to France to-day the Russian Government said that it had ordered the French repatriation mission in Russia to leave immediately. The Moscow radio "announced that the Note also said that Russia had resolved to terminate her trade talks with France. Within a few hours France retaliated. The French Government expelled the Russian repatriation mission from France. The members will leave tonight The Russian Note to France said that the French charge of subversive activities against two members of the Soviet repatriation commission in France was a “foul slander devoid of any foundations, and fabricated by the French Government to justify its arbitrary actions.” The Soviet Embassy in Paris, announcing the expulsion of the French commission, said that the Russian Government considered void the SovietFrench repatriation agreement of June 26, 1945, because of the French decision to take over the’ Soviet repatriation camp at Beauregard, near Paris. Moscow had recalled its repatriatidn mission from France yesterday. A French Foreign Office spokesman said that the Russians’ decision to break off the trade talks had surprised the French Government. Russia had linked the trade talks with the French and Russian repatriation missions, which the French Government regarded as quite distinct. The spokesman said that France had decided to expel the Russian repatriation mission because certain members were exercising activities endangering security, although not necessarily connected with espionage. The spokesman implied that those activities had something to do with the recent wave of French strikes and riots. He added that France had taken the initiative in Requesting that the repatriation missions in France and Russia should end their activities because France considered that repatriation questions should be handled through ordinary diplomatic channels. Reuters says that the Soviet broke off the trade talks with France because of the “French Government’s hostile attitude to Russia.” France had hoped to negotiate a shipment of 300,000 tons of Russian wheat in exchange for French industrial goods. French security guards raided Beauregard on November 15 and discovered an arms cache. The French Government also expelled |9 Russian members of the organisation known as the Union of Soviet Citizens because they were interfering with French affairs.