BRITISH DEMAND RUSSIAN ASSURANCE IN WRITING

Grey River Argus, 8 April 1948, Page 5

BRITISH DEMAND RUSSIAN ASSURANCE IN WRITING

Berlin Air Disaster (Rec. 9.30) LONDON, April 7 General A Sir Brian Robertson, the British zone commander, yesterday sent a letter to General Sokolovsky, the Russian zone commander, requesting a reiteration, in writing,, of the Russian assurance about the safety of the air corridor —a step which most observers n Berlin regard as essential, says the “Times” Berlm eorrespondent. Nothing has emerged to modify the view that although the Russian fighter pilot did not deliberately ram the British Viking passenger liner, his action was provocative. The British aircraft had the right of the way, and eye witnesses had no doubt that the Russian pilot was demonstrative tc the point of disaster. The correspondent adds that any disposition to regard the situation in Berlin as normal is fraught with danger, as is the contrary tendency to over-emphasise the significance of every incident. The situation is. in fact, abnormal, and will remain so until the relations of the four occupying Powers have been put on a sound, friendly, basis. That, in turn, will not be possible until there is full realisation in Moscow —which at. present is lacking—that the Western Powers have every intention of maintaining their rights and their freedom in Berlin. In the meantime the possibility of another incident, comparable with the Gatow tragedy, is only too apparent. STATEMENT BY BRITISH FOREIGN MINISTER LONDON, April. 6. ‘The Soviet authorities did no> issue a warning, as they should have done, that the fighter which caused the Viking crash yesterday was in the air,” said Mr Ernest Bevin, Foreign Secretary in the House of Commons. He had no informatiion to suggest that the Soviet fighter’s conduct was the result of direct instructions from the Soviet authorities, but he was pressing for an immediate inquiry. Mr Bevin added that the whole quetion of travel was under discussion with the Russians. “\Vc cannot yield our right to free access to and from the occupation zone.” he said. “I don’t want, to aggravate the already difficult situation which is capable of solution if there is goodwill.” Statements were also made to the House of Lords by Lord Nathan and Lord Pakenham. The Marquess of Salisbury said the recent actions of the Soviet authorities in Berlin could only tend further to impair relations between the Soviet and the Western Powers. He was glad to know that strong representations had already been made about the air crash by General Sir Brian Robertson. A British-Russian invetigating committee has begun an examination of the crashed aircraft in Berlin. Lord Pakenham has cancelled his visit to Vienna to-morrow. M. Gruber, Austrian Foreign Minister, was told by telephone from London that the visit was postponed “because of the political situation.” Soviet Version That Liner Hit Soviet Plane (Rec. 11.40) LONDON, April 7 The Moscow radio giving an official Soviet version of the collision between the Russian fighter plane and the British Viking air liner said: The Viking shot out of a cloud, and cut into the Yak’s tail.