Effects Of Nehru’s Peking Talks

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27502, 9 November 1954, Page 13

Effects Of Nehru’s Peking Talks

(Rec. 8 p.m.) LONDON, November 8. Mr Nehru had done a much better job in Peking than many of his Western critics anticipated, the “Economist” said today.

Singularly little had emerged about Mr Nehru’s conversations with the Chinese leaders and he had done little to dispel the mists of uncertainty. But press reports from Delhi showed that in his talks in Peking, Mr Nehru: Poured water on the Chinese flames of indignation over Formosa.

Tried to break down the walls of Chinese ignorance and distrust by interpreting the Western viewpoint on several Far Eastern problems. Categorically refused to let India be drawn into any Communist-spon-sored system of collective security for Asia.

The “Economist” said it was in some ways unfortunate for India that Mr Nehru’s capacity for “hitting the headlines” distracted people from the extent to which his policy and action often reflected both the interests and morality of the Indian educated classes as a whole. Because many of them were genuinely neutralist, for thev began to feel uncomfortable when anti-Americanism was allowed to go too far and that was one important reason why Mr Nehru’s own antiAmericanism had limits. Lately there had been just wen »

feeling with the curious results that instead of Mr Nehru’s visit to China evoking any great enthusiasm in India, it had been greeted with a good deal of apathy and wariness. On specific issues, Mr Nehru was reported by the Indian correspondents who accompanied him to make the following points to the Chinese: (1) To Mr Mao Tse-tung’s accusation that India is “too anxious riot to offend the West.” he replied that his aim was to work for a third area of peace in Asia, neither Communist nor Western. (2) To the Chinese pleas that he join the Communist security system he answered that one “cannot counter war blocs with peace blocs.” (3) To Communist suggestions about “stage-managing” the proposed AsiaAfrican conference, he retorted that the Colombo Powers were quite competent to decide how ft should be run. (4) -Mr Nehru is Understood to have made at ‘least an impression on the Chinese with his arguments that they should not claim their overseas nationals as citizens of the mother country unless these overseas Chinese themselves choose to reject citizenship—and so forfeit all political rights —-in the countries in which they live.