ENDING OF BERLIN BLOCKADE WOULD NOT MEAN ENDING OF SOVIET DESIGNS IN GERMANY

Grey River Argus, 3 May 1949, Page 5

ENDING OF BERLIN BLOCKADE WOULD NOT MEAN ENDING OF SOVIET DESIGNS IN GERMANY

ANGLO-FRENCH SUSPICIONS ' OVER RUSSIAN-U.S. TALKS

(N.Z.P.A.— REUTER CABLE) (Received 10.25 p.m.) PARIS, May 2

The Right AViiig newspapepr, “L’Epoque” complained that, through the bilateral talks in New York between Doctor Jessup (U.S.A.) and M. Jacob Malik (Soviet), the German' question was “being,solved over France’s head.” The newspaper said that Germany was a certain winner in these negotiations . “however they end up.” (Received 1.30 p.m.) LONDON, May 2 The feeling in London, after the recent conversations between America’s representative, Doctor Jessup, and Russia’s representative, M. Malik, is that there is a good chance of the Russian blockade of Berlin being lifted. This is stated by the diplomatic correspondent of “The Times.” He added: “Opinion in London is, perhaps, more suspicious than it is .optimistic, over developments in Ger;'many. The disappearance of the blockade would be a welcome dividend from the Western Powers’ firm stand_ in Berlin. But it is not supposed that the motives of the Soviet Government are concilia- ‘ tory ones. It is suspected that, whatever may be its methods, the Soviet Government’s object remains the same —to prevent the establishment in ■Western Germany of a Government that would stand between the Kremlin and a unified Communist Germanv.

The “Manchester Guardian” said that the raising of the Berlin blockade was likely, but added.—“lf Moscow is getting ready to propose someth ng like a truce in the “cold war;' no propaganda is being made to prepare the minds of the raithful for it.” The Daily Telegraph said:- The Russians should not be allowed, by means of fair words or of a promise of collaboration, to undo what has been so laboriously achieved through the currency reform in Berlin, and the creation of a West German Constitution, at Bonn. BERLIN AIRLIFT PLANS EXTENDED LONDON, Ma v 1. Mr Geoffrey do Freitas, Under-Sec-retary of State for Air, told an informal press conference at Berlin today that in the months to come more and more Hastings aircraft, each carrying three times as much as the Dakota, would be joining the Berlin lair-lift;

Mr de Freitas said that the air-lift has shown that air crews from Britain, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States can. work together in peacetime as well as they did in war. An air-lift plane, which had been missing since yesterday, was found to-dav, to have crashed in the Soviet zone,’ with all four members of the crew dead. . , A new type of radar navigational aid, developed b v United States technicians lias been the secret behind the recent big increase in the tonnag? carried in the Berlin air lift, said United States Air Force officials. The new apparatus, C.P.S. 5, has just been removed from the top secret- list. It enables ground operators to pick up aeroplanes when they are still 50 to 70 miles from Berlin, give the pilots their course, height and speed, and ensure that they approach speciliede airports at the right intervals. The normal radar ground control operators at the three West Berlin airports take over th? actual landing.