NEWS OF THE WEEK
THE conversations between the four Foreign Ministers continue to oscillate between apparent deadlock and a few steps of jolting progress, enlivened at intervals by propaganda tirades enunciated by
M. Molotov for the benefit of Berlin and Moscow. The salient ques- tion whether M. Molotov means the Conference to achieve anything
or not remains unanswered. That issue is in his hands, for while Mr. Bevin, Mr. Marshall and M. Bidault can concert action between themselves outside the Conference, and may have to, the Conference can only act as a Conference with the full concurrence of all its four members. After last week had proved barren new hopes were raised last Monday, when M. Molotov not only produced the comprehen- sive statement of Russian policy for which Mr. Marshall had been pressing him, but agreed that it should be discussed pan i passu with Mr. Bevin's British statement, drafted as long ago as the Moscow Conference. That happy accord has not borne much fruit so far. The Ministers are brought face to face with the whole question of the economic health of Germany, which all of them desire, but regarding which they entertain opposed aims. The Western Powers, with the general support of France, demand the free flow of products through- out Germany, and recognition of the reimbursement of British and American expenditure on food for Germans as the first charge on Germany's trade balance when she achieves one. For M. Molotov reparations, which he puts at the fantastic figure of to,000 million dollars, have so far come before everything, although he has once said, when closely questioned, that he does not put fulfilment of his reparation demand as a pre-condition for the establishment of German economic unity. This statement will now be put to the sharpest test in view of Mr. Marshall's forthright statement on Wednesday, ruling out the possibility of deliveries from German current production and requiring that nothing whatever shall be taken out of Germany after January 1st without due payment. Altogether, actual agreement has been reached on only two points, M. Bidault now accepting with some reservations the figure of about 11,000,000 tons for the level of German steel production while all Four Ministers have accepted in principle the clause in Ar. Bevin's statement regarding a common import-export programme for the whole of Germany. But at least the Conference continues.
