Russia Claims Action Was Preventive

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31764, 22 August 1968, Page 15

Russia Claims Action Was Preventive

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter —Copyright) MOSCOW, Aug. 21. Russia declared today that her troops and those of her four orthodox East European allies—Hungary, Poland, East Germany and Bulgaria had been sent to Czechoslovakia to prevent an externally - backed counter-revolution. The announcement, carried by the official Soviet news agency, Tass, came three hours after Prague Radio had announced that the foreign troops had entered Czechoslovakia without the permission of the ruling Czechoslovak Party presidium. The Tass announcement said the troop movement had been taken at the request of “Czechoslovak Government and party leaders,” but it did not stipulate which Czechoslovak leaders had requested the action. Unconfirmed reports swept Moscow that there had been or was about to be a Sovietbacked coup d’etat in Czechoslovakia.

The Soviet justification for its action in Czechoslovakia was similar to that used when

Soviet troops quelled the 1956 uprising in Hungary. But whereas in 1956 Soviet troops acted in an alreadydisturbed situation, today they moved into a reportedly peaceful country. Also, in 1956 they were already stationed in Hungary and acted alone. Today they moved in a joint exercise with their staunchest European allies. The decision to act in Czechoslovakia was apparently approved yesterday at a meeting of the 360-strong central committee.

Reports said the committee members, many of whom were on holiday, were summoned to Moscow over the week-end for an emergency session.

Today’s statement said the troops would leave Czechoslovakia immediately the “lawful authorities” there considered their presence unnecessary and the threat to the interests of the Soviet Union and other East European States was eliminated. The Kremlin has been reported as pressing the Czechoslovak leaders to have Warsaw Pact troops stationed along that country’s strategic border with West Germany, and a quick withdrawal was considered unlikely. The Soviet people were told of the action when Mos-

cow Radio broadcast the text of the Tass statement.

Unconfirmed reports said the Central Committee was still in session, and might remain so until the situation in Prague had been resolved. Meanwhile, all was outwardly normal as Muscovites streamed to work on a steaming hot August morning.