SOVIET AND EUROPE

Grey River Argus, 20 May 1944, Page 5

SOVIET AND EUROPE

(Rec. 10.10.) WASHINGTON, Ma v 19. M. Masaryk, Czech spokesman, in an interview, said: “I am convinced that the Soviet Union does not desire additional European territory, apart from a few defence positions. Russ a wants only to see Europe after the war prosperous and productive. They will be busy for a long time developing and reconstructing their own country, and will not want shooting in Europe, which might very well come if Bolshevism swept the Continent.”

LONDON, May 18. The Russian-Polish situation, de- 1 scribed by “The Econom'st” as “still ! a storm-centre of internat'onal poll- I tics,” is once again attracting atten- | tion. Following the controversy about conditions in the Polish Army aroused by sentences pronounced recently on Jewish deserters, the Socialist group in the National Council has tabled a motion of no confidence in General Kukiel, of Defence, whose resignation is demanded The Jewish Socialist leader, Dr. Scherer, has also asked for the resignation of General Sosnkowski, Commander-’n-Chief. This situation, which the “News Chronicle” considers has “the makings of a serious crisis in the Polish set-up” in Britain, comes at a time when new, informal suggestions for a resumption of Polish-Russian relations have been conveyed to the Polish Government by the State Department of th? United States after . consultat’ons with the Russian Government. The “Observer” says that the So viet would be prepared, on certain conditions, to make substantial concessions from the clan wh'ch proposed the Curzon Line as the new frontier, and would agree to the return of Lwow to Poland, and also to a reconsideration of the problem of | Vilna. The Russians’ conditions are that the coalition parties in Mikolajczjk’s Government in London should be enlarged bv the inclusion of the Union of Polish Patriots, an organisation of Poles in Russia, an.l which should be placed on an equal i footing with the other parties in London bv being given three Ministries', The Russians also demand the unification, of all the Polish armed forces in Russia, Britain, Italy and the Middle East, which would mean the abolition of the post now-held bv General Sosnkowski.

The “Economist” admits that the fundamental- factor in Russian-Pol-ish relations is distrust. It urges that British and American diplomacy make another attempt at reconciliation. The journal reviews the relations of the two countries and says the Poles’ fear of Russia and the Russian distrust of the Poles are both understandable. It says: There is just a possibility still of a solution. The first need is to convince the Russians that the Polish Government : n London is not anti-Russian, and that neither Britain nor America disputes Russia’s demand that its western neighbour should be- friendly. As yet no; assertions carry much weght so long as the anti-Russian activities of the Polish Army are permitted to continue. General Sosnkowski is not indispensible as Commander-.n-Ch'.ef, and should RO.”