DIVISION OF GERMANY

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28951, 20 July 1959, Page 11

DIVISION OF GERMANY

“Russia Seeking Perpetuation” (H2.: Press Association—Copvnpnt) (Rec. 10 p.m.) GENEVA, July 18. A United States spokesman in Geneva today accused the Soviet Prime Minister, Mr Nikita Khrushchev, of seeking to perpetuate the division of Germany, the American Associated Press reported. It said the official, the Assistant Secretary of State, Mr Andrew Berding, said that in Mr Khrushchev’s statements in Poland “we find a strange contradiction to any idea of the reunification of East and West Germany.

“It looks as if he wants the perpetuation of the present division of Germany,” Mr Berding said.

He spoke to reporters soon after the Foreign Ministers of the United States, Britain, France and West Germany met for 90 minutes to discuss their policy in the Big Four conference, which will resume on Monday. According to the American Associated Press, Mr Berding said the United States did not yet have the text of Mr Khrushchev's speech at Szczecin, but that it had received extracts which said: “The frontier which we will defend is now between East Germany and West Germany. This is the frontier which divides the world of socialism and the world of capitalism and we will defend this frontier with all our strength.” He said the United States delegation at Geneva found this contradicted the Soviet insistence that it was seeking the unification of Germany. In his speech, Mr Khrushchev said Socialist countries would help in the defence of Poland’s frontiers “like their own.” “Anyone who has evil thoughts about Poland ought to know that it has such friends as the Soviet Union and all Socialist countries,” he said. “Here, in the most western town of Poland, it is necessary to mention that we shall fight side by side with the Polish people. ..." He made no major statement on international issues. He repeated Soviet proposals on , the Berlin problem and for a zone free of atomic weapons in the Baltic. He said this zone should be guaranteed by the Soviet Union and the United States. There were no problems which could not be solved by negotiation. he added.