Laotian Princes Warned On Delay

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29715, 8 January 1962, Page 11

Laotian Princes Warned On Delay

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) GENEVA, January 6. The Laos peace conference warned the three Laotian princes today that a further delay in the formation of a coalition government might undo all the work done in eight months of patient negotiations in Geneva, reported the Associated Press.

The conference yesterday invited Princes Bonn Oum,

Souvarma Ptiouma and Souphanouvong to come to Geneva and continue their so far frurtiess effort to set up a Laotian Government of national unity. This Government would be headed by the neutralist Prince Souvanr.a Pnouma, and would include the neutralists as well as the factions of the pro-Western Prince Boun Oum and proCommunist Prince Souphanouvong. The three princes’ negotiations were broken off last week because of differences over the staffing of the key Defence and interior Ministries.

The Geneva conference, wh.oh had virtually completed a peace and neutrality treaty for Laos, required the presence of the future Government to settle outstanding points, the news agency said.

The invitation, signed by ro-ctiairmen, the British Foreign Secretary (Lord Home* and the Soviet Foreign Minister (Mr Gromyko), was published today. It said the Laotian princes’ failure to agree "is delaying the completion of the work of :te Geneva conference and the settlement of the Laotian question.

“The important decisions an the rnto.-na'Eonal aspects of the Latoian question which, thanks to the per-

Vietnam, United .Press International said’ today. The report came from the Laotian Government , of Prince Boun Oum, which is concerned over a threatened curtailment of United States aid. But Washington officials and informed Western sources in Vientiane said there was no evidence to support the Laotian claim, U.P.I. reported. Selling pared nearly 7,000 million dollars from stock valuations and caused a pileup, in trading orders that made the stock tape run nine minutes late at dosing.

Experts noted that the market had already been suffering from the effects of selective profit-taking but was losing only a traction at a time when the invasion report was received at Wall Street. The decline then increased.

There were no further reports today of new fighting in Laos or of a Chinese division marching across Laos to South Vietnam. Observers noted that neither Laotian officials nor Western diplomats and military authorities were showing any of the signs of alarm that normally w’ould follow a decline in the military situation.

sistent efforts of its participants, have been agreed at the Geneva conference, might come to nothing.” The New York stock market's heaviest toss in three months yesterday was attributed to a report that Chinese troops had invaded South