Wide Sounding By U.S. For Peace

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30947, 31 December 1965, Page 13

Wide Sounding By U.S. For Peace

LV.Z.P.A. Reuter—Copyright)

WASHINGTON, December 30.

The United States will probably extend her Vietnam peace drive with fresh diplomatic soundings over the New’ Year, officials said today.

President Johnson’s ambassador at large, Mr Averell 1 larriman, conferred yesterday with the Polish Foreign Minister. Mr Adam Rapacki, in Warsaw.

The United Nations Ambassador, Mr Arthur Goldberg, at the same time had an unexpected audience with Pope Paul at the Vatican.

Officials said both may call at other European capitals soon.

One possibility mentioned for Mr Harriman was a visit to Budapest Talks held so far by the two ambassadors were said to be in accordance with President Johnson’s stated desire of exhaustin'! all prospects for peace before “other hard steps are taken” in Vietnam. Washington, at present, is watching for some signal of the Communist leaders’ intern] tions. Fighting Pace What the Johnson Administration wants to see is a sign of Communist willingness to come to the conference table, or some show of slowing down the pace of the fighting in South Vietnam. “Determined To Fight” The State Department declined any formal comment on yesterday’s broadcast message by the North Vietnamese president. Ho Chi Minh, to Pope Paul. In his broadcast the Hanoi leader claimed America wanted war and not peace. President Ho thanked Pope Paul for his interest in a Vietnam peace but told him the National Liberation Front fighters in South Vietnam “are determined to fight as long as the United States aggressors still trample upon the soil of their fatherland.” President Ho’s message came like a dash of cold water on the United States peace offensive. Although it did not say specifically the United States had to withdraw from Vietnam before any peace talks could take place, it was viewed as discouraging. President Johnson has put a tight lid of secrecy on the diplomatic initiatives and related moves.

Officials said today they were unable to guess how long the present lull in United

States bomb raids on North Vietnam—now in its seventh day—might continue.

But they said it appeared unlikely the raids would begin again while Mr Harriman and Mr Goldberg were still undertaking theii missions.

The American Ambassador, Mr F. D. Kohler, met for an hour with the Russian President, Mr Nikolai Podgorny, in the Kremlin yesterday. Details

of the talks were not disclosed.

The United States Embassy said the meeting was at Mr Kohler’s request and was “in the nature of a protocol visit.”

Observers noted, however, that the one-hour meeting was unusually long for a purely protocol matter. Interest in Washington centred almost as much on the plan of Mr Alexander Shelepin, the high-ranking official of the Soviet Communist Party, to head a mission to Hanoi, the “New York Times” news service reported. Administration sources would make no comment on

the Shelepin mission. Diplomatic sources said, however, that they considered the visit to Hanoi to be of possibly great importance. Most diplomatic observers expect the United States to increase its military effort if peace negotiations cannot soon be had.

Many diplomats believe the Soviet Union would like the war to end so it can halt the deterioration of its relations with China and rebuild its influence in South-east Asia. Thus there was speculation today Mr Shepelin’s mission might be designed to bring Soviet pressures to bear on North Vietnam for a move toward peace.