AIM OF U.S. AID TO NEAR EAST

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22289, 26 March 1947, Page 5

AIM OF U.S. AID TO NEAR EAST

NO TROOPS TO BE DESPATCHED MR. ACHESON DEFENDS TRUMAN’S PLAN (By'Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright.) WASHINGTON, March 24. The United States, in undertaking to aid Greece and Turkey, was not assuming a British obligation or underwriting British policy there or elsewhere, declared the Under-Secretary of State, Mr. Dean Acheson, giving evidence before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

The questions submitted to the State Department appeared to assume that the presence of British forces in Greece would mean that the United States had made no agreement with the British Government on the plan to aid two countries and that, if the plan was authorised by Congress, it would be worked out through agreements with Greece and Turkey and with the aid of United States personnel.

Mr. Acheson said that the American plans for making a bulwark of Greece and Turkey against communism did not include sending troops

“Not Acts That Lead to War”

nesia, French Indo-China, Hungary, Austria. Italy and France. Mr. Acheson urged that financial aid be extended to help the southern Korean areas now occupied by American troops. He declared that Russia had blocked an agreement on a unified Korea. ■‘We have attempted for more than a year to reach an agreement with Russia but we have no.t been able to do so,” he said. “The failure presents a very serious problem.” . Mr. Acheson said it was not clear how much money would be needed. Senator C. Pepper asked Mr. Acheson if any country other than Russia was a potential aggressor against Turkey. Mr. Acheson replied that that was a matter for the Turkish Government to determine. He then added: “I don’t know of any other country which is a potential aggressor as far as Turkey is concerned.”

"We have not been asked to do so, we do not see any need to do so and we do not intend to do so,” he said.

“The proposals are designed to increase the stability of and further the opportunity for democratic development in two countries that are most important to the world community. “These are not acts which lead to war. They lead in the other direction. They help to maintain integrity and independence—what the United Nations’ Charter calls sovereign equality—of States. That is one of the principles on which the whole effort to organise the world for peace is found-

ed. Mr. Acheson continued: “Our military missions will be small ones whose task will probably be to find out the local need for military equipment and to see that the needed material is delivered and is in the hands of the proper authorities. Our missions will consist only of observers and advisers.” The Under-Secretary of State, Mr. Clayton, told the committee that all but 150,000,000 dollars of the proposed 400,000,000 dollars aid would be spent for military purposes in the two countries. Approximately 300,000,000 dollars would be got to Greece on a 50-50 basis for military and civilian necessities, 80,000,000 dollars being earmarked for internal costs to helo Greece to return to economic stability, 50,000,000 for foreign exchange costs, and 20,000,000 for livestock and farm equipment, e.tc. Mr. Clayton acknowledged that all of the 100,000,000 tentatively proposed to ease the Turkish troubles would be spent on safeguarding the country’s security. Most would be spent directly on military equipment, but some on closely allied projects, such as improving the transportation system. Mr. Clayton said that all financial aid should be an outright gift rather than a loan, because it was essential to American security Repercussions in East

Mr. Dirkson suggested that, in return for aid, America should request longterm air rights, naval bases, trade concessions and travel privileges.

“Reichstag Fire in America”

“The proposed loan, to Greece is a bad deal and the Greek situation is the ‘Reichstag fire in America,’ ” declared Senator Glen Taylor at a meeting of the Maryland Progressive Citizens of America.

Senator Taylor criticised the tendency to call everybody ' Communist who opposes the Government’s policies, and added: “If you don’t want to see America addled with Fascism, then you had better get busy and do something about it, because it is on the way.” Senator Taylor said that Hitler had come into power after he eliminated the Communists and labour unions and every other organisation that opposed him.

The United States, Britain and Russia attempted unsuccessfully to bring Turkey into the war against Germany in 1943.

The State Department disclosed this to-day when it made public the text of the agreement made at the Teheran conference, which stated that from a military point of view it was desirable that Turkey should enter the war before the end of the year.

Cross-examined by the committee, Mr. Acheson said that if the constitutional system in Greece and Turkey v failed the effect throughout the area from the Dardanelles to the China Sea would be immediate and profound. He added that the repercussions would be felt in Iran, Iraq, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, India, Burma, Indo-

The Associated Press points out that this is in conflict with Mr. Acheson’s testimony to-day when he told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that Turkey’s wartime neutrality had proved a service to the Allied cause by blocking Germany’s possible entry into the East.