INDECISION OF FRANCE

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27442, 31 August 1954, Page 11

INDECISION OF FRANCE

Britain And U.S. Blamed ’ Press Association—Copprighti (Rec. 11 pan.) NEW YORK, Aug. 30. , w “ be * n 8 more bitterly criticised in Washington than at any *™, e . th e French surrender to SSI*? ,n BXB. but it was conceded that Britain and the United States must •hare responsibility for the present ®ri»ta in the Western alliance, James Reston, chief Washington correspondent of the “New York Times," said today. Britain had refused to join the European Defence Community, even though the weakening of the British Empire ana the development of atomic energy and guided missiles had involved the interests of British national security more than ever in the unity and security of Europe, he said. Britain had given lip-service to the E.D;C. and had promised it limited association, but nevertheless it had clung to its ancient fears that a powerful coalition in Western Europe might one day threaten its security and commercial interests. If Britain had joined the E.D.C. it would have minimised French fears that European Army would inevitably be dominated by the Germans and almost certainly would have assured French ratification. Reston said Washington did not beheve that Britain had the strength either to maintain a balance of power policy in the last half of the twentieth century, or to defend the Commonwealth, without the assistance of powerful allies. The United States, in its turn, had asked France to do something which the United States itself was not prepared to up control of her armed forces and place them at the disposal of an international organisation. Washington had “oversold” the E.D.C. to the American people, the corref?.?nJ^ent added, just as it had “oversold the United Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.' It had allowed the ratification of .this treaty to become a symbol of France’s worth as an ally. The United States had also refused to consider any alternatives to the E.D.C. in 1951-1954, when effective alternatives might have been politically possible. In addition, the Truman Administration and later the Eisenhower Administration had committed a large American army to the Continent of Europe before getting the consent of the French Parliament for the rearming of the Germans and ratification of the E.D.C. Reston said that France, “mortally wounded in two wars and politically fragmented, might have failed her glorious tradition no matter what Britain and the United States did. but it is only fair to say that all the blame does not belong in Paris.” • Border Clash Near “ Jerusalem (Rec. 10 p.m.) TEL AVIV. August 30. A guardsman was killed and another wounded last night by “infiltrators” from Jordan at Ramat Raziel—a settlement of the former anti-British underground organisation, Irgun Zvai Leumi —lsraeli Army sources said today. They added that the two guardsmen were ambushed by “infiltrators” who penetrated to within 200 yards of the settlement’s perimeter in the Jerusalem corridor. Their attackers, hiding among the rocks, opened fire, wounding both.