Pacific Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 17, 1948, Tokyo, T�ky� 1 i by James e. Brown International news services in men Are today considered pos sible successors to Andrei Zhdanov s position As Russia s no. 2 ruler and heir apparent to Josef Stalin. These men in order of their importance Are Molotov Malenkos Beria Andreyev Savernik and the dark horse Andrei Vishinsky. Be cause of the secrecy surrounding All actions in the Kremlin the world May not know Stalin s Choice for Many months. Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Scriabin dismisses him contemptuously As a Mere bureaucrat. Possibly the most harmful legend about Molotov however is the one which credits Lenin with describing Hajn As the Best filing clerk in mos it is difficult for westerners to appreciate the extent to which Lenin is deified in Russia and the word deified is by no Means an exaggeration but Molotov could be made or unmade by the supposed opinion which Lenin held of him. Even Stalin has always leaned heavily on the alleged High regard which Lenin had for his capabilities. There is probably no Rumour which has been More assiduously attacked by the soviets than the reported existence of Lenin s last testament in which he is said to sum up his attitude toward each of his colleagues and describes Stalin As too rough and heavy handed for these then Are the main sources of the world s Conception of Molotov but there is a final and less tangible Factor his manner and appearance. He looks like an intellectual the pop ular version of the heavyweight thinker but when he talks his speech is not Brilliant and illuminating but banal and cliche Ridden. And obviously irrelevant he stutters. The general impression is disappointing. Nevertheless there is ample Rea Lenin. Thought without being influenced by tragic events in his life. Lenin s brother was hanged Stalin was expelled from a theological Seminary but nothing of this nature happened to Molotov. Young Vyacheslav Scriabin As a matter of fact had a fairly Happy and uneventful boyhood. He was born 58 years ago in the Village of no links 480 Miles Northeast of mos cow the son of a shop bookkeeper. He was educated at St. Petersburg polytechnic and it was there that he became interested in marxism. His Reading of Das capital influenced him so much that he joined the extreme leftists the bolsheviks and organized student groups. The men sheiks were the moderates. He worked on zvezda and pravda and it was while he was writing Arti cles for the latter newspaper that he met the Veteran revolutionary and editor Joseph Stalin. This association was to endure for the rest of their lives. He was at Stalin s Side constantly in the years when the Tough caucasian was winning his struggle for Power and he Rose with him. He has of course been Over shadowed by Stalin and Only a handful of men Are now alive who could correctly assess his part in the latter s Success. A a 1. But it clearly must have been considerable because Stalin is not a Man known to the world As soviet foreign minister Molotov is probably the most under rated of All Stalin s lieu tenants. He is popularly regarded As a sort of top bureaucrat of the Krem Lin the Man who incidentally attends International conferences and says yes or no according to cabled instructions from Moscow. The opinion however is not the one held by that Small Circle of state department foreign office and Quai d Orsati officials who have had con tact with him during the past two years. They. Believe that he is extremely Able and intelligent and that he plays no Small part himself in molding soviet foreign policy. In the Light of the fact that he is commonly regarded As Stalin s Suc Cessor this latter assessment of him would seem to be the most logical. It is significant however to note the sources of the legend of his Medio Crity. As with Many another Moscow fable which is now widely accepted As fact it was Given stimulus by that acid tongued bolshevik satirist Radek. The colourless Molotov who has always been a leading member of the chair borne infantry was nicknamed old Stone Bottom by Radek who used to convulse fellow wits with his description of the Gigantic posterior surmounted by an Pince no sitting at a Radek and his fellow wits have Long since been purged As wreckers and diversion lists which in a sense they were but the damage had been done. Radek s cracks always got around and the comrades thought this was pretty Good. A second source of the myth of Molotov the second Rater can be found in the writings of the Brilliant i but erratic Leon Trotsky. Consumed by his hatred of Stalin Trotsky had j few kind words for his rival s sup-1 porters and Molotov has been a Sta Lin Man from the beginning. Trotsky Page 2 stars fir stripes Stalin. Too rough and heavy handed for son to believe that the first impression of Molotov the Complex intellectual is the Correct one and that his prosaic manner of speech is de liberate. Rhetorical brilliance is suspect in the ratified atmosphere of the soviet command the Days when the rapier Sharp repartee of Trotsky Bukharin Zinoviev and Kaveney and others stunned and impressed foreign journalists Are gone forever. It is not difficult to seek the cause their Leader Lenin was the greatest of them All and he did not fear intellectual Competition. Today the sombre georgian who rules the . Has banished the ancient Art of forensic debate from his Domain. There is no Exchange of ideas there is Only one idea. And his representatives at the United nations Molotov Vishinsky and Gro Myko have faithfully kept to this principle in International relations. The soviet representatives have not discussed they have stated and Only the most naive would have imagined they were open to persuasion. One of the most important and noteworthy facts about Molotov is that he became a bolshevik deliberately and after much thought and Molotov. Best filing clerk in of sentiment and. Nothing would be More uncharacteristic of the soviet dictator than to retain a lieutenant simply out of loyalty. Molotov must have paid for his passage. He served As chairman of the coun cil of people s commissars from 1931 to 1941, when Stalin took Over the position and Molotov became minis Ter of foreign affairs. He had really been acting in this capacity since 1939 when he we if to Berlin to sign the non aggression pact with Hitler. Unlike Litvinov who was a conscientious communist and an inter nationalist Molotov is a russian first and a communist second. There is Little doubt today that he regarded Munich As a Chamberlain Daladier hint to Germany to attack Russia and that his own pact with Hitler was aimed to reverse the direction _ of nazi invasion. With this background it is a obvious Why Stalin and Molotov considered the War time Alliance with Britain and America As one of expediency an unnatural Union to be terminated with the end of hostilities. The reported condition of Stalin s health lends weight to the belief that there will be a successor occupying his chair in the Kremlin Council room before Many years and it is probable that his successor will be Molotov. There is no reason however to sup pose that this would mean a change in soviet policy. On the contrary Molotov May be expected to carry out the stalinist line More Faith fully any other possible Candi Date for the office. This Ihen is Molotov the quiet under rated chief executive officer for Josef Stalin and the Man who by All Odds is likeliest to become the next ruler of All the russians. Malenkos the present Secretary of the communist party is a bet Ter organizer and Public speaker than Ujj Molotov and he has the great advantage that his position has enabled him to build up personal followers. On the other hand he was riot Friendly with Zhdanov and he is hated by the so called Leningrad group who were Loyal to Zhdanov. This May prove a Handicap in any future struggle for Power especially if he clashes with Beria the present head of the mid the secret police. Oddly enough Malenkos and Beria have always been intimate and they Are usually seen talking together at Public meetings in the Kremlin. Whether this Friendship has now be come strained is a matter of con Jecture Beria the ascetic policeman whose Pince Nez glasses give him a scholarly air is Stalin s Hatchet Man. He has lasted longer than any previous head of the secret police some of whom like Yagoda met violent ends. His record is one of horrifying ruthless Ness no foreigner knows exactly How Many russians he has liquidated sent to concentration Camps or sentenced to forced labor but the figure runs into millions. Andreyev and Savernik Are Veteran members of the politburo they Are not colourful but Savernik has a Fol lowing because of his connection with the Trade unions and he has a degree of influence with Stalin. It is certain that if either were chosen it would be As a Compromise candidate. Andrei Janu Rievich Vishinsky is both the grand inquisitor and Ace Vishinsky. The gloomy Enigma of strange Legal diplomatic expert of the stalinist regime. As prosecutor general of the soviet Union he sent thousands of Stalin s political enemies to their deaths and As Deputy minister of. Foreign affairs he cloaked the Post War expansionist policy of the Krem Lin in of pseudo Legal obscurantism. ,. /. -. A continued on Page 10
