FRANCO AND DON JUAN

Evening Star, Issue 25715, 12 February 1946, Page 6

FRANCO AND DON JUAN

AGREEMENT ON FUTURE OF SPAIN PRESENT REGIME TO CONTINUE LONDON, February 10. General Franco and Don Juan have reached an agreement about the future of Spain, says the ' Daily Mail's ' correspondent at Madrid, quoting " excellent " sources at the recent talks at Lisbon. They agreed, first, that there is no use in Don Juan returning so long as General Franco remains, because Don Juan would simply become a decoration of the Franco Government. Secondly, the general does not believe the time is ripe for him to disappear from the Spanish political scene. Thirdly,. the moment is propitious for starting a new 'regime because Spain is at present short of. food and likely soon to be in a worse position. General Franco, in a speech at Segovia, declared that the rehabilitation of Spain made it necessary for the present regime to continue. " The less they understand us abroad," he said, "the greater the outside criticism ana the more should we reaffirm our revolution, which was one of open arms —not of the clenched fist." The regime would accept all Spaniards, irrespective of their political past, and the Government's main objective was to raise the standard of living.