U.S. TROOPS IN JAPAN

Chronicle (Levin), 17 February 1949, Page 5

U.S. TROOPS IN JAPAN

N.Z.P.A.

— Reutef"

Sirong Derial of Suggested Witiidrawal Made

CopyrlDht) ,

v Received Thursday', :-.10.55 a.m. WASHING.TON, Feb. 16. The Secretary of State;- Mv. Dean Acheson,, today dehied fkat the Jnited States cohtemp'late'd- witlidfawlng Ameriean. ' troops from Japan' either n'dw or during a-.war. He told a. Press conference thatMhe (Jnited State& Government did «ht .egard. Japan, as indefensible in a i'uture war. There was no ehange n the United States pol'icy regardng Japan. Mr. Acheson said he w'as refer;ing rto reports of statemeiits ivhicft had been attributed to tfie Arriiy Secretary, Kenneth Royall, afid reminded correspondents that Mr. Royall had also denied making any statement to this effect. Mr. Acheson said the reports from Tokio "do not represent any views le d by the Ameriean Government." The Christian Science Monitor, in a leading- artiele on the r.eport that the United States. may Withdraw from Japan, says the ' flurry of offieial denials haS quieted1. resulting consternation a little, if there is even some suspicion that the occupation authorities may have boomed the story 'to bring -a sharp Ameriean reaction in support of increased United States military cornmitments to Japan. An opposite theory holds.that it was intended to jolt the Japanese cbnservatives from their complacent reliance on continued Ameriean support. The Army Secretary, s4VIr. Kenneth Royall, today admitted he was che "High military authority" who aad held a meeting with newspaper correspondents in Tokio. Mr. Royall said: "I made no statement about Japan — military or otherwise." Asked about the report of the transcript of the meeting, wherein a "High military authority" was quoted as saying "I tend to the opinion that Japan is valueless in case of a war .with Russia," Mr. Royall said: "I did not make that statement and have never seen anyone who would be in the position to know who says I made such a statement. On the . contraryy I stated specifically that we did not plan to make any ehange in our forces in Japan. I said we were prepared to meet all comers."