Tito Apparently Confident That He Can Hold Communist Party In Yugoslavia

Wanganui Chronicle, 1 July 1948, Page 5

Tito Apparently Confident That He Can Hold Communist Party In Yugoslavia

CRITICISM BY THE COMINFORM STRONGLY REJECTED

Received 5.40 p.m. LONDON. June 30 The Yugoslav Communists’ energetic and unyielding rejection of the Cominform’s accusations suggests that Marshal Tito and his colleagues, convinced of the rightness cf their case are supremely confident of their hold on the Yugoslav Communist rank and file and on the country, says Reuter’s diplomatic correspondent.

Diplomatic observers believe ; the basic cause of Moscow’s quarrel with the Yugoslav Communist leaders has not yet been disclosed by either party but : might lie in specific Soviet de-; mands on Yugoslavia, which i Marshal Tito considers an in- ■ fringement of his country’s' sovereignty.

Some diplomatic circles think the Soviet Union may have demanded that Yugoslavia accept large numbers of Soviet military and economic experts to control the training and dr-1 ganisation of the Yugos av Army and the execution of a five-year plan, the passage in the Cominform communique, the surveillance of Russian officers and the derogatory attitude towards the five-year plan. The Yugoslav Communist Party, in the strongest possible terms, yesterday rejected the Cominform criticisms of its policy. The Yugoslav State information director said the reports that martial law had been proclaimed ' in Yugoslavia were “fantastic.” ! Moscow radio broke its silence on . Yugoslavia when in a nome news bul- . letin it broadcast the text of the Com- : inform communique, without comment, Prague radio broadcast extracts from the communique, also without comment. Russian-licensed papers in Germany omitted an v mention of the Cominform action, but papers outside the “iron curtain .an the store wth ; hie headlines. In its statement rejecting the Cominform’s criticism or its policy, the Yugoslav Communist Party says that the central committee of the Russian Communist Party sent a letter on March 27 to all members of the cominform except Yugoslavia. The letter consisted of a strong accusation against the Yugoslav Communist Party which was not informed of its contents or that the letter was sent.

Shortly after ’he central committee of the Hungarian Communist Party sent a letter to the Yugoslav Central Committee giving a resume of the accusations against the Yugoslav Party. The statement charges that the members of the "’ominform accepted Russia’s criticism of the Yugoslav Party, whose side was not heard. The statement describes all the Cominform allegations as “invented slander,” adding that the central committee eould not discuss them on such a basis. The, Cominform resolution constituted an attempt to discredit the reputation, internally and externally, of the Yugoslav Communist Party and its central committee. The criticism was all the more amazing because the Soviet Communist Party had rejected a written offer by the Yugoslav Communist Party on April 13, to investigate the charges. The Yugoslav statement describes as “the greatest possible historical injustice” the accusations that the Yugoslav Party adopted a nationalistic line. “Enemy propaganda will use the Cominform statement for slandering both the Communist Party of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union Central Committee,” says the statement. “The Yugoslav Communist Party cannot accept responsibility for this. The committee calls on the Yugoslav Communist Party to consolidate its ranks as the only answer to the accusations.” Tito’s whereabouts were still a mystery last night. Reports that he had arrived at Belgrade airport from his summer home at Bled were not confirmed. Officials in Belgrade told the "Daily Mail” by telephone that Tito was not in the city, but declined to say where he was. Reports from Trieste say that refugees, including “some well known personages” have been arriving in Italy from Yugoslavia. Other reports speak of troop movem»:ts throughout Yugoslavia, with simultaneous Russian Army movements on the Yugoslav borders.