Potent Weapon

Said Vermont's Senator George Aiken: "Food is the most potent weapon we can use today ... to oppose the forces of totalitarianism [in] the small, famine-stricken countries."

This week the Commerce Department reported that in 1946 the U.S. exported $2,166 million worth of food--more than in any previous year except hunger-ridden 1919. Most of this ($1,354 million) was paid for, cash on the barrelhead. But $628 million was the U.S. contribution to UNRRA stocks, and $184 million went through Lend-Lease.

Now, with Lend-Lease dead and UNRRA dying, Congress must decide how much food to give (or sell on dubious credit) to countries which have no dollars to pay for it. The Administration wanted $350 million for Italy, Poland, Hungary, Austria, Greece/- and China. Last week the House Foreign Affairs Committee rewrote the bill, to give the U.S. a foreign relief policy just as tough as its general foreign policy.

"Without Discrimination." One rule was firm: the U.S. would not withhold food from any peoples who were starving --not even the enemies of democracy. But, by the same token, nondemocratic nations drawing U.S. relief would not be allowed to starve the friends of democracy. Distribution must be "without discrimination as to race, creed or political belief."

Even countries which have driven democracy underground would be eligible for U.S. food grants if they complied with the rest of Congress' stiff terms: 1) they must make a genuine effort to become selfsupporting; 2) they must give "full and continuous publicity" to the relief program and the U.S. origin of the food; 3) they must not export commodities of a type they receive from the U.S. (Last year Yugoslavia took in U.S. wheat by one door, and sent wheat out by another door to the Communist-controlled Government of Rumania to help win an election.)

In full agreement with the House committee's views, the State Department promptly told Yugoslavia that it was ineligible for U.S. relief, either directly or through UNRRA, because its need was not great enough. If Marshal Tito had distributed food efficiently and nonpolitically last year, there would be no hunger in Yugoslavia now. Even if Tito wants to buy U.S. wheat, he will not get it until he convinces the U.S. that he will let non-Communists eat it, too.

/- Greece was included this request be fore the special $400 million for Greece and Turkey was thought of.

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