European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - October 1, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday. October 1.1989 the stars and stripes Page 3 in fascist clothing Mussolini s role debated by David Tarrant stiff writer Paris Italy s Entrance into world War ii has something of a sideshow Quality about it. With its bumbling Ducc Benito Mussolini Given to making grandiose exclamations of his nation Power Italy s image was that of a lightweight country that huffed and puffed while its fascist partner Ger Many blew the House Down. These Day  Ever the italian role in the Early stages of world i ii is undergoing a second look by some world War ii historians. Some italian historians have suggested recently that Mussolini s lop priority was avoiding War at All costs world War ii the beginning or that if he were compelled to fight he would actually prefer to join the British against Hitler. The View of a More prudent farsighted Mussolini also holds that the British pushed Mussolini out of the Allied Camp. Britain s calculated policy according to these historians was instead to Saddle Hitler with Mussolini in order to Force a weak and unreliable ally on Germany s fihrer. That View came under a Strong attack saturday Dur ing the last Day of a four Day conference of historians from 13 nations who gathered in Paris to examine the origins of world War i. British historian Denis Mack Smith argued that the modern View that Mussolini might actually have been a pacifist in fascist clothing is not Only absurd but contradicts most historical evidence. Numerous statements by Mussolini showed that above All else he idealized War and believed it was something Good in itself Smith said. Moreover in late 1939 and Early 1940. Britain far from wanting to push Italy into Hitler s Camp actually considered making Trade concessions with Mussolini in order to keep Italy Neutral As Long As possible. But Mussolini though glad to earn foreign Exchange. Wanted even More to fight and according to his intimates what he wanted More than anything else in his life was to Lead his country to a glorious military Success Smith said. For him to Back Down once Germany had begun to fight would make him look like a fool and being made to look foolish was his greatest fear of  Britain Smith said gained time anyway because by late 1939, Mussolini was woefully unprepared for War. British intelligence reported that none of the three italian armed services was ready to fight Smith said. Until the end of May 1940mussolini had not even taken the elementary precaution of setting up the Structure of a higher  throughout this period Mussolini told his military officers that they would soon be fighting and that to remain Neutral would Label Italy As a second class nation Smith said. Shortly after Hitler opened his attack on Western Europe in april 1940, Mussolini reportedly told his aides we italians have been dishonoured  is no More time to lose. Within a month i shall declare  Benito Mussolini. Dishonoured enough in late May 1940, the British government made one last attempt to keep Italy out of Fth War by offering Itan equal place at any future peace conference so Long As it remained Neutral according to Smith. Mussolini rejected the idea and other overtures from the French saying he wanted War which he finally declared against France and Britain on june 10. As an ironic postscript. Smith noted that during the War trials in Nilon Borg Germany it was Learned that the German higher military command had done its Best to prevent Italy from entering the  View remained that italian intervention was More of a Burden than a help to the nazi War Effort he said. Soviet files on War with Finland sought by Ron Jensen staff writer Paris a finnish professor leading talks on the soviet invasion of Finland in 1939 chastised soviet historians As the rear guard of  soviet historians Are still nearly so years later unable to come Here and engage with us in a serious dialogue Jukka nov Akiva of Fth University of Helsinki said Friday when he opened a discussion of the finnish soviet War. Many things arc still unknown about what is called the Winter War Between the finns and soviets added panel member John c. Cairns of the University of Toronto. But what is obvious and always has been is we need to know More about the soviet Side he said. Is it too much 50 years after the event to Hope we arc on the eve of finding out in defense a soviet historian said nov Akiva s re Mark was behind the times. It seems to me that under present circumstances you cannot say that about All soviet historians said Vladimir Constantin Wolkoy director of the Institute of slavonic and Balkan studies in Moscow. And according to another soviet historian the cover soon will be lifted from the evidence. I d like to say to my colleagues that we arc now working on documents that will allow us to clarify this matter said Alexander Oganovich chibarian director of the Institute of world history in Moscow. A round table discussion of the four month War is scheduled for late october at his Institute and will involve both finnish and soviet researchers he said. I d like to say in particular that we re trying to be unprejudiced chibarian continued. We re trying to move away from previous  the Exchange took place during an International conference at the american University in Paris concerning the Start of world War ii. It was not the first time during the four Day Confer ence that the Lack of soviet documents from the period had drawn criticism. Norman Davics a historian with the University of London noted during a discussion of the soviet German non aggression pact of 1939 that any comments were slanted to one Side because of Fth i d like to say to my colleagues that we Are now working on documents that will allow us to clarify this  Alexander chibarian preponderance of available German documents and the dearth of soviet papers. The War Between the soviet Union and Finland one a Large Power and the other a bit player in world politics began nov. 30, 1939, after negotiations failed to give the soviets what they wanted. Olli Chvila inn of Finland s University of Tam Pere said the soviets wanted Security on their North West Border. They asked the finns for islands in the Gulf of Finland a new Border More than 22 Miles from Leningrad to make it less vulnerable to attack and permission to put a naval base in Finland. The finns did not believe the soviets would go to War Over their demands and when the shells started Tofall Finland s leadership thought it merely an Exten Sion of the War of nerves he said. The finns he said had Long feared soviet aggression but failed to recognize it when it happened. They soon however began a ferocious fight expect ing assistance from Sweden or Britain. When sufficient help did not come the finns accepted a hard peace in March 1940.they were forced to cede More territory than Origi Nally sought by the soviets. As to the reason the soviet Union went to War Derek Spring of Britain s University of Nottingham said it was clearly an act of aggression tied perhaps to Stalin s attitude toward anti soviet people and the contemporary Ideal orgy of communism. Asking Why the attitudes surfaced at that time an against Poland Spring suggested that the soviet Union needed not to show its weakness with regard to Ger  Mackintosh of the International Institute for strategic studies in London agreed noting that the soviet defeat of Finland probably was a Factor in hit Ler s decision to suddenly attack the soviets in world War ii. Following the defeat of Finland the germans perceived the soviet Union As a threat and potential aggressor. But there arc Many mysteries about this Winter War. Victor Yves go Bali of Fth University Institute for advanced International studies which is located in Geneva said we certainly need badly soviet archival material. Without soviet archival material something important is  w. Berlin flights to be fewer because of noise Bonn West Germany a Al lied civil air officials Friday announced reductions in daily air traffic servicing West Berlin after the City s government demanded fewer flights to Cut noise pollution. Allied civil air attaches said nine daily round trip flights will be dropped starting oct. 29 five from Frankfurt two from Stuttgart and two from co Logne airports. West Berlin s government led by the left leaning social democrats in coalition with the environmentalist alternative list last month demanded that 36 daily round trip flights be dropped from Tegel Airport s schedule to reduce Jet engine noise. There arc currently about 830 round trip flights servicing West Berlin each week. An Allied civil air official in Bonn denied that the reductions came As a result of pressure from the West Berlin government. The airlines decided to reduce on their own commercial basis said the official speaking privately. As it happens it fits nicely into what the Berlin government was looking for and with the West German government s commitment to reducing air traffic noise and maintain sufficient air service he said. The Allied civil air attaches in a statement Friday to the news Media also urged All airlines servicing West Berlin to find ways to Cut Down on noise from their air planes. The three wartime Allied Powers the United states Britain and France officially administer West Berlin under Post world War ii agreements