European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 25, 1977, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday september 25, 1977 the stars and stripes James Reston Page 15 uncertainty leaves . In tense situation the representatives of the nations Are gathered in new York for their annual review of world political economic and military problems and to put it mildly they Don t like what they see. The . Secretary general Kurt Wald Heim normally a prudently optimistic Man has come Back from a tour of the major problem areas with very Little Prog Ress to report. In an interview he made the following Points in general the nations Are preoccupied with their own internal problems and have Little to say about establishing an effective new International order. Neither the . Nor the soviet Union has been Able in the last year to establish a climate of positive cooperation. Brezhnev told him in Moscow that he was con fused by the policies of the Carter administration. One Day he said Carter seemed to be concentrating in the development of new weapons and the next he seemed to be advocating Mutual restraint arms control and the reduction of tensions. What Brezhnev asked Waldheim was he supposed to believe in China Waldheim was told that the new Post Mao regime had not changed its policy of vigilant suspicion toward the soviet Union wanted better relations with the United states but would never accept the concept of a separate Taiwan which sooner or later would have to be brought under the control of peking. The chances for reconciliation and peace in the Middle East seemed less Hope Ful now than a year ago and the new israeli Compromise proposals had Little Chance of acceptance by the Arab states or a majority of the United nations. Finally the potential for regional conflict sin Africa remained highly danger Ous and about the Only amiable thought Waldheim had in this regard was that the . Ambassador to the United nations Andrew Young had succeeded in modify ing the anti american sentiment of Black Africa none of this of course is new. Wald Heim did t think there was any imminent danger of a world crisis but the uncertainty of relations Between Washington and Moscow and the stalemate in the Middle East he Felt marked the begin Ning of a tense situation which could Lead William f. Buckley to great danger in the coming year. It was Waldheim s Hope that the gather ing of representatives of about 140 nations Here for the general Assembly might Lead to some serious bilateral talks in private on the most critical issues and these have already started. Secretary of state Cyrus Vance has been talking to the soviet foreign minister about breaking the stalemate on the strategic arms talks and will see president Carter again on this subject when Carter comes to the . On oct. 4-5. This is the critical Issue Waldheim believes must be resolved if the present mood of doubt and confusion is to be dispelled. Meanwhile israeli foreign minister Moshe Dayan has come Here with some new ideas about How the Geneva Confer ence on the Middle East can be convened with a voice though no Independent Dele gation for the palestinians. And he is talk ing in a Way that no israeli official since Ben Gurion has talked about a . Guar Antee of israeli Borders in a general settlement. And of . And even soviet observers in a . Presence to police any final peace agreement. Dayan has to illusions that these Tenta Tive suggestions will be acceptable to the . Or even to Washington though he has talked vaguely about the possibility of a . Naval base for the sixth Fleet at the israeli port of Haifa on the Mediterranean to encourage the concept of a More Tangi ble .-israeli Alliance but at least he is using the . General Assembly to float some new ideas. Apparently the egyptian foreign min ister Ismail Fahmy is doing the same in a different Way. He has also come to the United states for the general Assembly meeting and like Dayan has been seeing Vance and talking to the press and show ing some flexibility. I m telling you frankly he said in Washington that there s nothing we can do More than we re ready 16 do. What s new in the situation is that the Arab countries Are ready for the first time to accept Israel As a Middle East country to live in peace in this area with secure Bor Ders and these Borders must be the inter National Borders from 1967." obviously All this is ambiguous and maybe even deceptive but it suggests at least a willingness to talk and change the � 1977 los Angl a times question and maybe this is the Best argument for having the United nations organization in new York. For old National enemies gathered to Gether for the annual . General Assem Bly can get lost in the vast turmoil of new York City. They can talk directly or indirectly with one another without anybody knowing it and try to untangle the Public policies of their respective nations. Nobody has Ever Given the . Fair re Spect for this service. By itself in can t solve problems but it gives them an excuse to get together and talk out their dilemmas on the Side. C new York times Rhodesia is a prime example of . Harm those who believe that the United nations is entirely irrelevant and there Are Many who believe this Are Correct up to a Point. It is True that moral declarations is suing from the . And bearing its moral Pedigree Are suspect in the same sense that professions of virtue from political candidates Are suspect. Mostly . Declarations Are filed away somewhere until the time comes to celebrate the anniversary of their passage at which Point they Are trotted out. But every now and then the . Does very Concrete harm Rhodesia being a Case in Point. Lord Home when he returned to her majesty s government s Secretary for foreign affairs in 1973, admitted that if the conservative party had been in Power it would not have gone along when Sanction were voted by the Security Council against Rhodesia in 1965. Why because he said he does not believe in sanctions except in extreme circumstances and the Rhode Sian situation was not an extreme Circum stance. At the time Dean Acheson fiercely denounced the imposition of sanctions As clearly in Vio Jaton of the . Charter inasmuch As the government of Rhodesia having declared its Independence of great Britain was on its own As regards internal arrangements. Just the same great Britain in a fit of pique that would have great resonance asked for and got sanctions. Years went by and last Spring seeking to tighten these sanctions the Security Council voted to freeze All rhodesian funds everywhere in the world except when used to pay pensions. The idea was to immobilize the two or three rhodesian information offices extant. Why one would think that the mighty Powers represented at the Security Council would have very Little to fear from the tiny Little office in Washington whose annual budget is $200,000 and whose principal executive or. Kenneth Towsey has duly registered As an agent of a foreign Power. What harm can he do certainly or. Towsey has been in a Posi Tion to be useful to newspapermen who desire information about Rhodesia that in t easy to get elsewhere. Needless to say the rhodesian information office makes the Case for the rhodesian govern ment that is its Job. But in doing so it handles a great Deal of material stories statistics photographs Field accounts notices of negotiations which do not come in automatically from the world s press and do not come in at All from the front line press. When terrorists from Zambia descend on a Christian Mission in Rhodesia and murder a few nuns that information is not Likely to reach us Courtesy of the zambian information service and one cannot count on a s being on the spot. So when the Resolution to freeze Rhode Sian funds was offered and . Representative Andrew Young voted in favor of it a group of journalists addressed a letter to president Carter asking whether he in tended to interpret that Resolution As re Quiring him to freeze funds payable for the maintenance of the rhodesian information office. Among the signers were Patrick Buchanan John Chamberlain Stanton Evans James Jackson Kilpatrick and Nick Thimmesch. President Carter has to this Day not answered their patient in Quiry. However or. Hodding Carter Iii assistant Secretary for Public affairs and department spokesman a gentleman journalist who not Long ago used to write in Plain English has now replied to an in Quiry from someone in Corvallis Oregon with the news that yes indeed the state department intends to freeze the Rhode Sian currency upon recommendation from the Treasury department. Although the Resolution was not specifically directed against informational activities he writes the rhodesian information office. Clearly Falls within the category of offices referred to in the  on the question whether this deprives . Citizens of their first amendment rights to find out what s going on or. Carter is absolutely chirpy with optimism. American citizens will still be Able to obtain information about Rhodesia from other sources including directly from the regime in  american citizens May in fact prove better Able to obtain in formation about Rhodesia from Salisbury than from the White House Given the pres ident s Long silence in response to the in Quiring correspondents. One would Hope there would be some limit somewhere to the indignities the United states is willing to undertake in behalf of our blood War against Rhodesia Why Don t we prohibit americans from sending postcards to friends in Rhodesia. Perhaps after ascertaining that the addressee is White instead of Black the United nations when it is All Over will prove to the world that she has succeeded in breaking a Butterfly upon a wheel. No doubt general Amin will attend the Cele bration. C 1977, Washington Star Syndicate the opinions expressed in the columns and cartoons on this Page represent those of the authors and Are in no Way to be considered As representing the views of the stars and stripes or the United states government