ADMINISTRATION OF BERLIN

Press, Volume LXXXIV, Issue 25538, 5 July 1948, Page 7

ADMINISTRATION OF BERLIN

Britain, America, and France have etsablished “a shadow Kommandatura” to run Western Berlin. The Russian staff was still in the Kommandatura building on Friday and was making no effort to remove Soviet files and documents.

A British Foreign Office spokesman Baid on Friday that Britain regarded the four-Power Kommandatura as Btill in existence and hoped that it would m£et again. The Frankfurt radio, quoting a French source, said that the French zone of Germany would be merged economically with the American and British zones on Auguet 1. The Russians have provided new headquarters in which sections of the Berlin city police force, which is now

in separate buildings,, will be concentrated on Tuesday. The new building may also become headquarters for tiie Russian zone police and control staffs. A stir was caused in Berlin on Friday when a Communist leader. Mr Herrtian Matern. in a speech to the Soviet-sponsored People’s Council, said that the Russians had instructed the Mayor of Berlin (Mrs Louise Schroeder) to accept only Soviet orders in future and that the orders of the other occupation Powers were null and void. Later, however, Mr Matern said he had made a mistake. He gave no explanation for his statement, which had led most Berlirtprs and Allied officials to believe that the German administration of the city would be split in two.