CURRENT INTELLIGENCE BULLETIN - 1952/04/18

• Document Type: SPECIALCOLLECTION
• Collection: Current/Central Intelligence Bulletin Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 02064584
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 7
• Document Creation Date: May 24, 2019
• Document Release Date: May 30, 2019
• Publication Date: April 18, 1952

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SEC1J1TY INFORMATION
18 April 1952
Copy No. 52
CURRENT INTELLIGENCE BULLET
DOCUMENT NO.
NO CHANGE IN CLAM y
I DECLASSIFIED
CLASS. CHANGED TO: TS S C
NEXT REVIEW DATE: /AO
AUTH: fIR 70-;
DATP tio-K .1 TirVIID
Office of Current Intelligence
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
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SUMMARY
GENERAL
1. Australian Prime Minister called to London by Churchill (page 3).
NEAR EAST - AFRICA
2. Libyans want US to play larger part in Libya (page 3).
3. Establishment of interim government in Greece now appears
unlikely (page 4).
. WESTERN EUROPE
4. Reaction to the US proposal for rapid completion of Western defense
treaties (page 4).
5. German unity issue may lead France to reject the Defense
Community (page 5).
6. Stikker predicts serious economic trouble in Europe (page 6).
7. East Germany orders decentralization of municipal government
(page 6).
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GENERAL
1. Australian Prime Minister called to London by Churchill:
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Prime Minister Menzies has been requested
to go to London for urgent consultation with
Winston Churchill. Menzies will not be able
to leave until mid-May, however, and will
stop over en route for several days in Washington to discuss "defense
issues" and Australia's position in "global plans" with President Truman.
The emphasis in London will also be on defense,
with attention to political aspects of the Middle East Command, the
procurement of military equipment for Australia and probably atomic
developments. It is assumed by the Australians, however, that a wide
range of topics will be discussed, including Kashmir, Egypt, China, and
Korea.
NEAR EAST - AFRICA
2. Libyans want US to play larger part in Libya:
Libyan Prime Minister Muntasser has informed
the American Minister in Tripoli that an in-
creasing number of Libyans believe the United
States, rather than Britain and France, "should
assume primary responsibility for the Libyan nation." Some Libyans
fear that a few years of strong British interest in Libya may result in
something comparable to what has happened in Egypt.
Muntasser stated that Libya "has little confi-
dence in France" and that, while relations with the Italians were
satisfactory, negotiations toward a property settlement were slow
and filled with obstacles.
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3. Establishment of interim government in Greece now appears unlikely:
Opposition leader Papagos has prevented
formation of the proposed interim government
by his refusal to participate in a vote of confi-
dence. The King's political adviser, Vendiris,
had insisted that without the support of all the parties an interim govern-
ment could not carry out economic and other reforms.
Comment: Papagos fears that a vote of
confidence in an interim government would enable it to remain in power
indefinitely. Consequently he has refused to take part in such a vote.
Indications are that the present government
will continue to function for the time being with decreasing effectiveness
in the face of a deteriorating economic situation and increasingly bitter
opposition from Papagos' Greek Rally Party.
WESTERN EUROPE
4. Reactions to the US proposal for rapid completion of Western defense
treaties:
for defense purposes
The British, Dutch and French Governments
are reacting negatively to a United States
suggestion that both the Allied-German con-
tractual agreement and the European Defense
Community treaty be signed on 9 May. They
agree that the earliest possible date is 20 May.
The British Foreign Office thinks that no
deadline should be set until negotiations are
nearer completion. Furthermore, Britain
will not sign the contractual agreement until
the terms of the German financial contribution
are settled.
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Paris observes that the EDC treaty drafts may
be completed by 30 April, but that the participating governments should
have several weeks to review its provisions. The French Foreign
Minister may stipulate that the British security guarantees extend to
EDC nations only as long as they are EDC members.
Comment: Reaching accord on the terms of
the German financial contribution to Western defense is the main barrier
to early agreement on both the treaties. The Allied High Commissioners
in Bonn believe that all other points in the contractual agreement will be
settled by 30 April. The Netherlands has created an impasse in the EDC
negotiations by insisting that the Federal Republic pay for all its defense
costs.
5. German unity issue may lead France to reject the Defense Community:
The American Embassy in Paris warns that
if the French public gains the impression
from Western publicity on the Soviet note that
the strength of the West is being harnessed in
the cause of German unity, the French Government will be faced with
additional difficulites in seeking National Assembly ratification of the EDC.
There is widespread fear in France that efforts
to unify Germany could precipitate a new world war, and one of the most
telling arguments against the EDC when the Assembly first debated the
question was the claim that a European Army might be used in the service
of German unification.
� Comment: The French Government was un-
prepared for the violence of the Assembly reaction to the pre-Lisbon
Defense Community plan, and despite the steps to meet the Assembly's
conditions, the renewed discussion of the possibility of German unity
� will encourage parliamentary opposition to the European Defense
Community.
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6. Stikker predicts serious economic trouble in Europe:
Dutch Foreign Minister Stikker recently told
United States officials in Washington that he
expected "real economic trouble" in Europe
within the next month or so.
He doubted whether the Organization for
European Economic Cooperation and the European Payments Union
could be kept going in the future, particularly in view of the United
States refusal to make a direct contribution and its insistence that
members solve their own financial difficulties.
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Stikker believes that a termination of the Union
would mean the end of the trade liberalization program in Europe, and
might prevent implementation of the European Defense Community and
the Schuman Plan,
Comment: The continuation of the Payments
Union, which is scheduled to end 20 June, is still under discussion.
Although Stikker is at times unduly pessimistic on world developments,
the Dutch Government has considered the Union necessary for the
preservation and expansion of intra-European multilateral trade.
7. East Germany orders decentralization of municipal government:
The East German Government has ordered,
effective 1 May, the return to municipal
control of the administration of the ten largest
East German cities, excluding Berlin.
this
order further evidence theocTanstuniTf PirTiditermination to
strengthen its control by associating the population more closely with
the regime and by enlarging its opportunities for influencing the people.
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Comment: This action may be part of the
current "democratization" in the Soviet Zone. Reports of penal reforms,
an order for increased attention to individual rights, and a recent directive
for favorable consideration of "bourgeois" personnel in government
positions are indications of the new "democratic" policy which was started
in January.
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