Russia Wants Channel Hop Before Balkans

Manawatu Times, Volume 69, Issue 57, 10 March 1944, Page 5

Russia Wants Channel Hop Before Balkans

• ) (By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright. \ Received Thursday, 10.40 p.m. WASHINGTON, March 9. e While hopes persist that Turkey may yet reach an understanding with Bri- ?’ tain and play an active role in the u war, diplomatic quarters believe that no important developments can be ex- * pected in the Balkans while the Channel . D invasion is pending. Joseph Harsch, in the Christian Science Monitor, says: “The British , decision to halt war shipments to 1 ‘ Turkey is an indication of British disappointment over another possible opportunity which has not developed beLe cause of American and Russian wishes. 1 * Strengthening Turkey as a springboard if for a Balkans campaign has been a 1“ cherished British concept as the Burma campaign has been a favoured Ameri- . can concept. “In the more direct sense, the shutL p ting off of arms shipments to Turkey resulted from Turkish dissatisfaction " with the scheduled amounts, but behind 3 ‘ that lay the fact that these scheduled amounts had been whittled down by a J" higher priority undertaking to a point s * where there was little meaning in what was left. If there were to be no Balkans campaign the only value in ‘ strengthening Turkey was to consolidate Turkish goodwill. When the results in goodwill failed to justify the expenditure the deal was called off. The Scripps-Howard newspapers’ for- ' eign editor, William Simms, says: “Rightly or wrongly there is a deep(l seated impression in the United States s that Russia as a whole opposed British- . American activities in the Balkans and Ankara. Washington and London de- , ferred to Soviet wishes. Russia be0 ’ lieved in and demanded a concentration on the cross-Channel invasion, leaving g the Balkans until such a time as Russia ® was free to direct the enterprise.” = Supporting the British ideas, Mr. Simms says: “It is conceded that 3 Turkey’s entrance into the war on the “ side of the Allies would be catastrophic c for Hitler, and the position of Hungary, ; Rumania and Bulgaria would swiftly 1 become hopeless. To meet the Balkans 1 menace the Nazis would be compelled • to weaken both the eastern front and the Atlantic Wall and wage a major war on three fronts, each remote from the other two.”