AIDES & RUSSIA NEAR DISRUPTION AT WAR’S CRISIS

Grey River Argus, 7 August 1948, Page 5

AIDES & RUSSIA NEAR DISRUPTION AT WAR’S CRISIS

What Happened in 1943 (Rec. 9.5). WASHINGTON, Aug. 5. The Western Allies’ relations with Russia were so 'bad in May, 1943, that they were almost disrupted, according to an article in “Collier's Magazine,” by Mr Robert Sherwood. It is based on the papers of the late Sir Harry Hopkins, President Roosevelt's adviser. “When Mr Churchill came to Washington in May, 1943, the date of the European invasion was definitely set for May 1 1944,” he writes. M. Stalin on learning that a second front would be postponed for a year—it had been set for 1943 —cabled to Mr Churchill, reviewing all assurances that had been .given regarding the second front, and he concluded with the words that could be interpreted only as charges of deliberate bad faith by the Western Allies. Mr Churchill despatched an angry reply to this without consulting Mr Roosevelt, and the tension increased. There was now an atmosphere alarmingly reminiscent of that which had preceded the Molotov-Rib-bentrop Pact of 1939, and that fears of a separate Russo-German peace were revived. It was fortunate that the enemy did not know how bad the relations were between the Allies at that moment, and how close they were to disruption.” Mr Sherwood disclosed that Mr Churchill pressed for an early start to the Sicilian invasion. He writes:—“Early in 1943 General Eisenhower said that it would be difficult to launch the Sicily operation as it was planned. When Mr Churchill heard this, he immediately cabled Mr Hopkins: ‘Our people feel that they can get their side of things ready for the Sicilian operation by June. I think it is an awful thing that in April, May and June, not a single American • or British soldier will be killing a single German or Italian soldier, while the Russians are chasing 185 ’divisions around.’ ” . ■ Mr Sherwood also reveals that in March, 1943, Mr Anthony Eden, then Foreign Minister, told Mr Roosevelt at the White House that he thought that Russia would be the United States and Britains most difficult post-war problem. COMMUNISTS GOT URANIUM FOR SOVIET Allegations of Congressman (Rec. 11.10) WASHINGTON, Aug.. 6. At the hearings Representative John McDowell, Republican, of Pennsylvania, told the Congressional Committee that there was more to the Communist story than had been brought out. He said: “As chairman of this committee’s special sub-com-mittee, I can reveal that, at the very height of the atomic research in 194 a two shipments of uranium compound were sent to Russia, after tremendous pressure on all phases of the Government from known Russian agents and others, who had worked themselves into positions of importance. One shipment was three hundred pounds. The other was one thousands pounds. They left from a small, obscure airfield in the United States. The sub-committee, has established, almost beyond question, that shipments of heavy water were also sent to Russia during the war. Heavy water is used in atomic research.

General Leslie Groves, Wartime Director of United States Atomic Development, said that if any atomic material had been shipped to Russia it was without his knowledge. He added that he did not believe that Russia had the atomic bomb, and said she would not have one for at least two years.