YUGOSLAVIA FEARS SABOTAGE BY RUSSIANS Czech Red Minister Attacks Britain

Grey River Argus, 24 August 1949, Page 5

YUGOSLAVIA FEARS SABOTAGE BY RUSSIANS

Czech Red Minister Attacks Britain

(Rec. 11.0). BELGRADE, Aug. 23. The Yugoslav railway workers have received a warning to beware ot sabotage from the Minister ot Railways, M. Todor Vujasinovic. • Th e Minister told a meeting of the workers that the Russians had started first a political attack and then an economic attack against Yugoslavia. He added: “When something does not happen as it should, do not be satisfied that it is because of old material. Nowadays we can expect sabotage”..

Kremlin Aim To Down Tito From Inside Yugoslavia (Rec. 9.50). NEW YORK, Aug. 23. For the time being, at least, American authorities doubt whether hostilities will develop in the Balkans as the result of Marshal Tito’s differences with the Kremlin. This is stated by th e Herald Tribune’s Washington correspondent, who says: “A prevalent belief is that the Soviet’s increasingly better diplomatic campaign has the same old aim—to overthrow Marshal Tito from within his own country. The difference now is that the Soviet itself is pressing the issue, instead of leaving it to its satellite Governments. Russia’s drive is believed to be, primarily, a defensive one, and to be aimed at the returning of Yugoslavia to Moscow control. This would extend the Iron Curtain westward, and would help to offset such Western gains as the Atlantic and the success in Greece and in Germany”.

MOSCOW’S SET AGAINST TITO

LONDON, August 22. London observers believe that Moscow’s latest Note to Yugoslavia is the green light for a new Cominnform bid for the overthrow of Marshal Tito by joint appeals to -'loyal” Yugoslav Communists to oust their leader. This Note, observers feel, is a peg for the self-justification of the "democratic methods” used by -the Communists to achieve a change of ership.Moscow’s threat to "resort to other more effective means” against Yugoslavia, is interpreted by observers to refer specifically to the alleged illtreatment of Russians, and not as a hint of war. The Note, though ominous in tone, was still no more than a move in the long drawn' out propaganda battle.

“More effective means” might be taken against a group of Yugoslav children in Russia, about whose alleged detention, Belgrade has already protested.

Tito’s Assassination Hinted By Russians

(Rec. 11.20). LONDON, August 23. The Russian Army’s newspaper in Berlin “The Taegliche Rundschau”, has a strongly worded editorial against Marshal Tito.. It said: “Tito would wind up lik e Hitler and Mussolini”. The newspaper inferred the possibility that Marshal Tito might be assassinated. ANOTHER HINT (Rec 11.30) LONDON, Aug 23. The Associated Press Bucharest correspondent says.—A Russian Marshal Uoroshilov, at a rally of 8000 .Rumanian Communists, called Marshal Tito a traitor to Communism and accused him of secretly negotiating with Western Powers to liquidate Communism in Yugoslavia, and to restore Fascism. Pie said: — "The Yugoslav people, who know their true friends, will know how to prevent this.”

GERMAN COMMOS TO BACK TITO AGAINST MOSCOW LONDON, Aug. 22 The Associated Press Berlin correspondent reports; The German Communists, opposed to Russian domination, formed a new party today and promptly sent Yugoslavia’s Marshal Tito a message of support. A veteran underground campaigner, Karl-Heinze Scholz, is leader of the new “Free Communist Party.” He said: “We have formed a party to fight imperialist Bolshevism. We say the so-called internationalism of Soviet Russia is a fraud.” Herr Scholz said his party had' 4000 active members in the Soviet zone and another 600 in the Western sector of Berlin. The Western authorities have so far refused to license the new party, while Eastern Germany’s Communist organisation calls it an outlaw group.