Safety in Germany
The attitude of most Germans in the Soviet Zone, and of most Socialists in West Germany, to the question of all-German elections is that it is worth while to take almost any risk in order to have those elections as soon as possible. Their im- patience with the Western Powers, who are represented as being willing to take no risk whatever for the sake of having the elections, grows steadily. Dr. Adenauer, caught between the revived demand for Germany unity and the undiminished need for German safety against Communist domination, is left with little enough room for manoeuvre ; and he appears to be using it to persuade the Western Powers to complete quickly the system of safeguards they must have before all-German elections, or even the discussion of those elections with Herr Grotewohl, the East German Prime Minister, could be agreed to. Those safeguards are an agreement on a European army, including German contingents, and a new contractual relationship between West. Germany and the Western Powers. The case for hastening the completion of these arrangements, and, for making them as liberal as possible, is plain. Delay and an attempt to impose complicated legal safeguards will not in the least increase Herman reliability in the coming difficult years. Speed and generosity may help. But still, however impatient the East German people may be to have a chance to slip out of the Communist grip, and however furiously Herr Schumacher may campaign for the elections that might put his Social Democrat Party back in power, there must be no doubt about the order of events—full associa- tion of West Germany with Western Europe first, elections second.
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