Armed Peace

Moscow is currently waging a loud propaganda campaign designed to demonstrate that the U.S. and Britain endanger the world's peace by maintaining excessively large numbers of troops on foreign soil. Moscow did not mention the fact that Russia still has more soldiers abroad than the U.S. and Britain put together (see map).

Burden on the Masses. Taking his cue from Generalissimo Stalin's recent statement (TIME, Oct. 7), one Dr. Lund, a Moscow radio commentator, last week ironically offered his sympathies to U.S. taxpayers: "Keeping this huge $16 billion military budget . . . will mean a terrible burden on the masses. . . ." Pravda reported that unemployment was growing in the U.S., that only "huge Government expenditures on war needs" along with slow demobilization kept it in check.

With the same propagandist intent, Russia's Gromyko last week submitted a request for discussion of "the presence of forces of U.N. member states on the territories of non-enemy countries" to U.N.'s General Assembly (scheduled to meet Oct. 23). Gromyko had made the same request in the Security Council last month. The Council had defeated the motion because of U.S. and British opposition; the U.S. had insisted that all foreign troops, including those on former enemy soil (where the Russians have most of their forces) be discussed.

But since the U.S. has no reason to conceal figures on its foreign garrisons, U.S. opposition to partial disclosure may have been a blunder. Scarcely had the Security Council rumpus subsided when the figures were revealed by the New York Times's military analyst Hanson W. Baldwin. One interesting point: in China (wildly decried by Russia and her friends as a prey to U.S. imperialism), the U.S. maintains only 29,000 troops, while Russia has 75,000 in China's northern provinces.

First Concession. Perhaps the most crucial focal point of Big Three troop concentrations is Germany. For months, the U.S. and Britain have brought well substantiated charges that the Soviet Army is spurring production of war materials in Germany's Soviet zone. (Excerpts from a long bill of particulars: V-weapons are being made at Soemmerda near Erfurt, at Halle, at Nordhausen and in the South Harz; fuel for V-weapons at Leuna; aircraft at Gotha; machine-gun parts at Leipzig; tank chains at Plagwitz; Red Army uniforms at Plauen.)

Germany's Russian-controlled press replied with similar charges about the Western zones, but when the U.S. and Britain suggested an investigation commission to check on arms production in all zones, the Russians refused. After interminable wrangling, they finally agreed to the proposal last week. The commission plans to start its investigation by November.

It was the Russians' first concession on Germany in months.

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