RUSSIAN NOTE OF PROTEST

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27517, 11 October 1950, Page 7

RUSSIAN NOTE OF PROTEST

Alleged Strafing Of Airfield By American Planes New Zealand Press Association—Copyright Rec. 11 p.m. LONDON, Oct. 10. Russia has protested in a Note to the United States that two American Shooting Star jet fighters on Sunday strafed a Soviet airfield 100 kilometres from the Korean border, Moscow radio announced today. The protest said that damage was caused to property on the field but it did not mention casualties. /" The Deputy Soviet Foreign Minister, Mr Andrei Gromyko, handed the protest to Mr W. Barbour, Minister_Co^nsellpr vi of,.the .American Embassy, in Moscow, after reading it to him first. Mr Barbour refused to accept the Note on the ground that United Nations forces were acting in the area concerned. Mr Gromyko said this was groundless as the Russian Note referred to United States aircraft.

The Russian Note read: “On October 8, two fighter planes of the United States Air Force of the Shooting Star type, grossly violated the State frontier of the USSR. Approaching in a hedge-hopping flight over a Soviet aerodrome situated on the sea coast in the Sukhaya Rechka area, 100 kilometres from the Soviet-Korean frontier, they fired at the aerodrome from machine guns. As the result of the firing, damage was caused to the property of the aerodrome. “In connection with these provocative actions by the American Air Force, the Soviet Government lodges a resolute protest with the Government of the United States. The Soviet Government insists, upon the strict punishment of the persons responsible for the attack on the Soviet aerodrome and expects from the United States Government assurances that it will take the necesary measures to prevent such provocative actions in future. Th Soviet Government considers it necessary to state that the responsibility for .the consequences for such action falls entirely on the Government of the United States.”