East Reacts To Johnson Speech

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30959, 15 January 1966, Page 13

East Reacts To Johnson Speech

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) WASHINGTON, January 14. Russia said today that the “decisive thing” about President Johnson’s State of the Union message was that it showed the United States intended to continue fighting in Vietman.

The Government newspaper, “Izvestia,” said: “The President’s message was given at a time when leaders and diplomats of the United States are undertaking to convince the world that Washington is thirsting for peace in Vietnam.

“All those concerned with the dangerous developments in South-east Asia looked for evidence of American readiness to take real steps toward the cessation of armed aggression in Vietnam. “But the decisive thing in the message turned out to be an assertion by Johnson

that Americans do not intend to leave Vietnam. ‘We will stay there unUl aggression ends,' he said. “This statement has only one meaning—the Uh i ted States intends to continue war by means of arms to impose its will on the Vietnamese people,” the newspaper said. China said the message showed “clearly that the United States Government’s peace offensive is nothing but a smokescreen to cover its scheme for a wider war.”

His remarks against spreading nuclear weapons also means that Washington “will strike more deals with the Soviet Union so that they can maintain their position of nuclear overlords," the official New China News Agency said in a broadcast heard in Tokyo.

“Johnson’s message sheds additional light on the true colours of the United States imperialist gangster,” said the agency. Meanwhile Moscow Radio has declared that Russia “will exert full effort to ship modern weapons” to North Vietnam to help defeat American forces.

Broadcasting an analysis of the trip of Mr Shelepin to Hanoi, Moscow Radio said: “All available aid will be extended to North Vietnam to defeat the United States aggressions.”

The Russians have accused China of obstructing Soviet aid to North Vietnam. Pravda said the Communist aid to Hanoi would have been even more effective if China had not rejected united action.