Boycott By Eastern Europe

Greymouth Evening Star, 12 July 1947, Page 5

Boycott By Eastern Europe

LONDON, July 11. Yesterday was the final date by which the 22 nations invited to the Paris conference tomorrow on the Marshall plan were requested to reply. Fourteen have accepted, namely, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Iceland, Eire, Italy, Luxembourg, Holland, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, and Turkey. Eight have refused. They are Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Finland, Hungary, Jugoslavia, Poland and Rumania. The eastern side of Europe has thus excluded itself from the conference. The Czechoslovakian news agency announced that the Government has decided not to join the Paris conference. The Czechoslovak announcement says: “The Government has ascertained that a number of countries, especially all the Slav countries of Central and Eastern Europe, have not accepted the invitation. Consequently these countries, with which Czechoslovakia maintains close economic and political relations, will not take part in the conference. Czechoslovakia’s participation would be interpreted as an act directed against friendship with the Soviet and our bther Allies.” Significant Time Commenting on Czechoslovakia’s reversal of her decision to attend the conference, the diplomatic correspondent of The Times says that the news was announced, significantly enough, while the Czechoslovak Prime Minister and Foreign Minister were in Moscow. He adds that the change of mind is regretted in London, but. the wording of the Prague announcement leaves little doubt about the strength of the Russian arguments brought to bear on the Czechs, It is reliably stated in Budapest that the Hungarian Government rejected the invitation because the Communist leaders issued a warning that if Hungary accepted, the Russians would immediately stop the return of war prisoners, demand payments of war reparations in arrears, extend the confiscation of livestock, and indefinitely delay the ratification of the peace treaty. The diplomatic correspondent of The Times says that the replies which have been received both from countries which reject the invitation and from some which have accepted show that many misunderstandings remain. “The excuses for rejection,” he adds, “are stated in the most extreme ’ manner by the Jugoslav Government, which says that to take part ‘in an organisation set up in advance without its co-operation and with the agreement only of the British and French Governments cannot be reconciled with the customary principle of co-operation among sovereign states.’

“The Belgrade Government then repeats many of the arguments used by Mr Molotov, declaring that the needs of the most heavily afflicted countries were being neglected, and that in any case the scheme would involve ‘interference in internal affairs.’ Two With Reservations “At the other end of the scale, one or two of the accepting governments express the hope that no political discussions will be opened in Paris, and also say that there must be no interference with any national plans for developing trade. “The terms of the British-French invitation and the scope of the conference prove all such fears to be groundless. Nobody proposes that an all-embracing and unified European economic plan should be devised. Nobody suggests that national economies should be merged in any way. The governments have been' invited to the conference to make a combined reply to General Marshall’s offer of American help,, and one condition of that, offer was that European countries should show they were doing their best to help themselves and each other.

“Hence it follows that the governments taking part in the scheme should state first of all what their own resources and plans are, and then declare what surplus resources they* possess and would make available for other countries.

“In short, the purpose of the conference is not to draw up a plan but to take stock. It is not even certain that wide agreements for the exchange of surpluses will be made, but the surpluses will be declared openly, and they will therefore be seen more clearly. The best use to which they could k be put will no doubt emerge during the discussions, but their disposal will rest with the possessing countries. “Out of it all, a programme of what the co untrieasrr SHRDLUSHR what the countries are doing and what they can do for the future should be produced, and then their needs of food, raw materials, and equipment from outside will be assessed.”

SURPRISE EXPRESSED AT FINLAND’S NON-ACCEPTANCE

(Recd. 10 a.m.) HELSINKI, July 11.

The Moscow radio’s announcement that Finland has rejected the invitation to the Paris conference on the Marshall plan caused surprise in Helsinki. An official spokesman said the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Commission yesterday recommended provisional acceptance, but the decision was not finally taken until this afternoon when the Cabinet, without discussion, unanimously voted against acceptance.