U.S. To Match Soviet Aid To Middle East

Press, Volume XCVI, Issue 28473, 31 December 1957, Page 9

U.S. To Match Soviet Aid To Middle East

(Rec. 8 p.m.) LONDON, December 30. The United States would match —and beat —the “no strings” offer of economic aid which Russia made on December 27 to the AfricanAsian bloc nations at the Cairo conference, the “Daily Mail” said today. The United States Secretary of State, Mr Dulles, would announce an American counter-offer when he went to the Bagdad Treaty meeting in Ankara on January 27, the “Daily Mail” said. He would tell members of the pact’s Ministerial Council that the United States was prepared to give the Arab countries even more economic, financial and technical aid than the Russians were offering.

The Beirut correspondent of the “Daily Mail” reported today that Russia during the week-end stepped up her ‘‘aid without strings” drive to take over the Middle East. Syria announced that Czechoslovakia would ‘‘lend” her £60.000,000 to buy a factory plant. This was in addition to a £200.000,000 Russian loan already agreed on. The new Czech loan was blatant propaganda, the ‘‘Daily Mail” said. There was no way Syria could repay either Czechoslovakia or Russia.