Berlin Blockade UNO Council To Condemn Soviet Act

Greymouth Evening Star, 18 October 1948, Page 5

Berlin Blockade UNO Council To Condemn Soviet Act

(Rec. 2 p.m.) LONDON, Oct. 17. Paris observers regard it as almost certain that the Security Council will, without further delay, adopt a resolution condemning the Soviet blockade in Germany. Opinion favouring such action hardened among the “little six in the Security Council during the weekend and only Argentina and Syria may abstain from the final vote in the council.

The German News Agency stated that the United States Chief of Civil Administration in Berlin, Colonel Louis Glaser, in a report to the American military authorities, said that he thought that Russia would rather fight than “abandon her intention of bringing Communism to Western Europe.” He added: “The main pillar of this intention is the control of Berlin.”

The agency also quoted Colonel Glaser as saying: “Berlin is of extraordinary symbolic importance to the Soviet Union. It is quite possible that the Soviet Union would resort to every means, should it be threatened with an ideological defeat in Berlin.” France has described the Soviet call for a one-third reduction ,of armaments by the Big Five as being ‘■‘purely theoretical,,” and has demanded inventories of the armed forces of each country, with the publication of their armaments-, and also the establishment of an efficient and effective control of these. This is stated by Reuter’s correspondent at Paris, who says that M. Couve de Murville told the United Nations France believed that the time between the present U.N. Assembly Disarmament Sub-Committee that meeting and the next one should be devoted to the study of disarmament. A report should then be made to the Security Council. M. Henri Rolin (Belgium) said that reduction of armaments alone would not secure world security and international confidence. Countries would become fearful that the armies oi other nations were excessive, while their own armies were not sufficient. Dr Tsiang (China) declared that he could not support the Soviet plan for a one-third disarmament.. The Soviet plan said nothing about the other two-thirds. China was not ready to sign a blank cheque on a matter of that kind.

Dr Tsiang said that as soon as their own present struggle with the Communists was over, China would reduce her arms by four-fifths. The committee adjourned.