Portrait of the Week
ONCE again the main news of the week concerns the Middle East—that conglomeration of sand, nationalism and oil — though the result of the Grand National and M. Malenkov's doings have run it close. The suggestion made by the French Government that there should be a three-power conference on the crisis in the Levant has been played down in London, where it seems to be felt that France is viewing policy in that part of the world with all the objectivity which statesmen use when their own vital interests are not involved. In fact, though M. Pineau in an interview with The Times has denied any intention of going it alone, his recent meeting with Colonel Nasser, during which he apparently received assur• ances that Egyptian territory was not being used to train Algerian fellaghas, may have left him more disposed to combat the Baghdad pact than the Foreign Office likes. This week' end saw another attack by the Egyptian Prime Minister on the pact as well as a sharp statement from the Foreign Office accusing him of directing constant propaganda against Great Britain and states allied to her—frequently in areas, such as East Africa, where Egyptian interests are not concerned.
In fact it has become evident this week that rejoicing over the unwillingness of King Hussein of Jordan to meet the other heads of Arab States was premature. British officers are to remain with the Arab Legion purely as technicians, while the appointment of Colonel Abu Nawar as its Chief of Staff brings into a commanding position the most prominent opponent of British influence in the Jordan armed forces. Jordan is slipping into the Egyptian orbit, and probably only a remnant of Hashemite family feeling has prevented its taking sides openly against the Baghdad pact.
In New York the Security Council has been meeting to discuss the Palestine situation. An American motion calls for a survey of the present position to be made by the Secretary- General, Mr. Hammarskjold. Meanwhile, rumours in Washing- ton that the British Government has completed its plans for military intervention in the event of an Arab-Israeli war seem to have galvanised the American Government into doing like- wise.
Both within and without Russia the posthumous trial of Stalin continues to attract attention. The East German Com- munist Party—ever in the lead—is preparing to purge Stalinist elements from its ranks, while in France M. Duclos has remarked that the old boy was not so bad after all—a remark which was not reproduced in Humanise. In Italy the Nenni Socialists have been upset by the news, and British Communists have been conducting what the Daily Worker describes as a 'lively and profound discussion.' Guessing whose head is going to roll might provide a novel sweepstake at the Party Congress over Easter. In Russia itself the chairman of the party organisa- tion in the University of Tiflis has been dismissed for 'failure in Party political work.' The Tiflis paper Dawn of the East, reporting this, comments on mass absence from classes among students and also the revival of what it calls a 'wild custom.' This was the elopement of a student of geology with a girl biologist. Evidently love laughs at Lenin.
In the Tunisian elections the Neo-Destour, the party of M. Habib Bourguiba, has polled some 98 per cent. of the votes cast. The main opposition led by M. Salah ben Yussef abstained, and their strength can be judged from the hundred thousand abstentions against the six hundred thousand votes Polled by the Neo-Destour. In Algeria outrages continue, but in Cyprus the rigorous curfew imposed for Greek Independence Day was successful in preventing incidents. In Denmark the strike wave goes on, and some British ships have been unable to load, while there are signs that the strikes are spreading to Norway.
At home M. Malenkov has astonished everyone by being human, though the excellent public relations of his visit have been a little spoiled by the arrival of the abominable General Serov in his new jet air-liner. At Manchester, that home of liberal traditions, a protest meeting has been held against the forthcoming visit of MM. Khrushchev and Bulganin and attended by a curious mixture of people. The question of the future of Malta has been discussed at Westminster, and the debate was distinguished by a good speech by Mr. Lennox- Boyd. It was announced that the Government accepted the full implications.of the policy of integration and that the Prime Minister would be making a statement about its timing shortly.
Other home news includes the publication of a White Paper on the consequences to our economy of full employ- ment, an appeal by the Chancellor of the Exchequer for a Partnership to beat inflation and talks betwen the Prime Minister and the chairmen of nationalised industries. The London printers have gone back to work. Some trade unions are finding themselves living on capital. The Queen has laid the foundation stone of Coventry's new Cathedral.
The Grand National was won by E.S.B. after the Queen Mother's horse Devon Loch had slipped and fallen fifty yards from the post. Cambridge won the boat race. The base- ship of the Commonwealth Antarctic Expedition has arrived back in London Pool.
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