RUSSIAN NOTE TO FRANCE

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25367, 15 December 1947, Page 7

RUSSIAN NOTE TO FRANCE

Arrests of Soviet Citizens

DEMAND MADE FOR RELEASE (Rec. 8 p.m.) PARIS, December 13. The French Foreign Office announces that the Soviet Embassy in Paris has sent a Note to the French Government protesting against the arrest yesterday of Russian citizens in Marseilles and Paris. France’s reply to the Russian Note says: “The Russian citizens about whose ‘arrest’ Russia has protested were not arrested but were justifiably deported. They were members of the Russian repatriation mission and should have left France on December 9, at the same time as Colonel Filatov, head •of the mission. They remained in France, however, contrary to the French decision, duly notified to Russia, and contrary also to Russia’s own decision of December 9 terminating the mission and ordering its members to leave France.”

Reuters correspondent in Paris says: “French Foreign Office officials described the Russian Note as ‘an energetic protest.’ It is learned reliably that the Note demands the immediate release of an undisclosed number of Russian citizens arrested in France.” The correspondent adds: “Since the beginning of November 43 Russians are reported to have been arrested or expelled from France.

“The First Secretary of the Russian Embassy (Mr Starikov) said that the French police were continuing provocative arrests of Soviet citizens on baseless pretexts? “Russians arrested in Paris yesterday included the former commandant of the Russian repatriation camp at Beauregard, near Paris, which the French raided and took over, a member of the Soviet repatriation mission, and two chauffeurs attached to the mission. The arrests in Marseilles and Paris totalled eight. “A French Foreign Office spokesman said that the new arrests were merely in execution of the French Government’s decision to rid France of foreign persons known to be dangerous to France’s security and to have indulged in subversive activities. A French Note sent to the Russian authorities last night said that allegations of violent treatment of Russian repatriates, as contained in the Russian Note of December 8. were without foundation.”

The French National Assembly approved by 411 votes to 183 the Government’s recent policy toward the Soviet Government, and particularly its refusal to accept the Russian Note of December 8, which broke off trade negotiations and accused the French menf lllll^^ repa^r^a^on agree-