‘Wall Of Suspicion’ About Vietnam

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31215, 12 November 1966, Page 15

‘Wall Of Suspicion’ About Vietnam

(N.ZP.A.-Reuter— Copyright) LONDON, November 11. A wall of suspicion is blocking Vietnam peace moves, according to the United Nations Secretary-General, U Thant.

In a message to be read at a London convention today, U Thant calls on the opposing sides in Vietnam to take three preliminary steps "as a proof of the sincerity of their peaceful intentions.” These are the cessation of the bombing of North Vietnam, the scaling down of all military activities by both sides, and a willingness to enter discussions. U Thant's message says: “. . . The dangerous escalation of armed forces has been accompanied by an increasing distrust among governments and peoples, resulting in a dramatic set-back for human development “This of suspicion be-

tween the parties . . . may become in itself an obstacle

to peace.” "There is no other way than a return to the 1954 Geneva agreements guaranteeing the independence and neutrality of the whole of Vietnam," the message said. Conflicting views among the Vietnamese should be reconciled through peaceful processes and without foreign intervention, U Thant said.

“Perhaps there may be some limited risks involved in such efforts,” he said, but they were nothing compared with the major risks the world faced unless the trend towards a larger war was reversed.