FOREIGN RADIO REACTIONS TO THE PRESIDENT'S HYDROGEN- BOMB DECISION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000500730139-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: R
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 21, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 12, 2004
• Sequence Number: 139
• Publication Date: November 11, 1998
• Content Type: REPORT

Approved For Release 2008/03/03: CIA-RDP80-00809A000500730139-4
CLACENTRA LOINTELUGENCE AGENC,~ESTRIC' PORT
INFORMATION FROM
FOREIGN DOCUMENTS OR RADIO BROADCASTS !CD NO.
COUNTRY Foreign
SUBJECT FOREIGN RADIO REACTIONS TO THE
PRESIDENT'S RTTh OGEN--BOMB DECISION
HOW
PUBLISHED Radio Broadcasts
WHERE
PUBLISHED
F
DATE
PUBLISHED
LANGUAGE!
DATE OF
INFORMATION
DATE DIST.
A February 1950
NO. OF PAGES 2
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS IN/ONNATION AIIICTINO THE NATIONAL DIFENIS
OF THE UNITED 'STATES WITHIN THE MOANING OF ESPIONAGE ACT 10
N. I. C., GI AND SI.'AN AMENDED. ITS TRANSMISSION ON Till NIVILATION
OI ITt CONTlNTI IO!ANT NANKIN TO AN YNAYTHOSIIED PINION IS PEO?
NIOITSO IT LAW. CEISODUCTIO I OF TNIl FORM It PSONIIITED.
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
I
=RODt TION: According to the BBC, "world comment on President Tri n'e
dooi8ion... has for the most part been limited to saying that it was Inevitable. In
some cirolea, however, it is feared that this is the beginning of on armamente race.)
In general! the same description appii
has been, monitored from foreign raiioZ
outside the Soviet orbit'. Within
Communist sphere the only radios loo have reported or commented' on the President's
dpoiaion'are Radio Leipzig and the .ADN press service in Soviet-controlled Germany, and
the Soviet controlled
program of the Austrian station at Vienne'. The substance of the
German eomaent however, is of
Particular interact _n view of past inataoea when
the finally established Soviet-Communist
propaganda line on important new situation
and eventalbee been at least partially foreshadowed by Initial broadcasts from the I
Soviet-controlled German stations. And currently, the German comment about the
hydrogen bomb dwells on its "blackmail" character and on unusually pointed, Implicit
counter-throats about Soviet development of a similar bomb and about the Importance
of manpower'in deciding the outcome of a war. Also somewhat unusual Is a personal
attack on the President--"Wee Inciter Number One" who, with "hie clique, known one
ob,leotivo l only, and that io waa? and mop: -:,j x"; 1.rwaan and his cli gun or* 'nothing
but quite ordinary crooks who oily think of how they can burn, eoald, and suffocate
our ..ldren, women, and mothers."
X
THIS DaaTIC
OF DIRECT U.S. NWOTIATIONS WITS THE USSR: Radio Leipzi le first
rels v ant broadoist reports, with Implied approval; the American 'Communist Party's
demand thAt
the P
id
t
I
res
en
should retract his decision and "start direct negotiation
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with tGze Sovlet~Government concerrc`.ng the prohibition of :omic weapons."* This
sentiment, however, is not repeated in the a:absegvent Soviet-controlled comments.,*
Nor i.a it even broached in b: oan;este fr?cra radios outside the Soviet orbit. Same of
the latter cite the Fras.dent's decie"ion as: a "solemn warning to the' Russian... (to)
hasten to On the atomic control soup rr,fore the U.S. undertakes manufacture of the
hydrogen b t" i(Ba 1o Paris quoting tht. Pa~ical Socialist L'ATJROR1 ); or. as a possible
"hint at, e new effort" to secure atomic cc; rol agreement by way of an, Implied
villingceea to close' dcvn the kyci:"aaez. i o b project once adequate -agreement is
reached (BBC reporting the MM-3B 'i'ER GTJ.A DI,NN's opinion) .
I,I ll
AMERZCAN "SUM-PLACEMAI'L' : It ',rill be r eaaeu't ar. ed the t one of the major Soviet
Communist i opagende themas i,~. ende,-.t on -:ye e'mouncement of a So-siet atomic ex-
plosion var+ tme "ccnsequent failure of 4m.^rict.n atomic diplomacy and blackmail." And
currently, the major thame of the as yet rel'itively limited Soviet-controlled German
and Austrian radio propsgands Floe";., the hydrogen-bomb decision is that I"in the name
of humanity, the I U.S. is n w embt:rking on a nev, large-scale attempt at blackmail."
The decision la a "continuation of the present war policy of the PmeriLan Government"
and time at "Intimidation of the p.te te-'loving peoples. " It reveals the' mentality of
American general and politicians tiro sre prepe.red to :,snort to "mesa murder" in
order to raaliaeltheir imperialist: p'arw. Its real elm was to create an atmosphere
of fear in order to "brehir up the Reece movement," A Leipzig commentator, putting
words into American mcuub>, asserts that the following is "what the Americans want
to say"
"' It i. e in our power to kill the lot of you. Don't : ebel, therefore, even
If we rc.ey be,, doing something that displeases you. ?sou must realize after
all that you can cont.1nue to live only by following in the wake of the
strong ,ind invincible United States,"'
The de.:iaicn i= even deeca,ibed am a sort of internal American blackmail similar to
Ritler's a ttvmp-i: to enco'.rc?aga bitter-end German fighting "with his tales of the forth-
coming German ?6aoret weapon.'"
BUT T DESR TS ?"FUR:M rDTfizc ATOMIC ENMaf DEVELOPMENT": To depreciate the
power of this new, ,Americe::~ "blao; ,y'1 ;brcat,, the Soviet-controlled broadcasts,
especially from Germany, 2,^Zo.; t to implied counter-throats of an unusually direct
sort. The T.-!."j zig rams, f~ rzamp".e, says that -.ho hydrogen bomb has been under
American_ corFideretion ev_r ,loco t'--e "eaibarraaziue discovery tL'dt the USSR was further
advanced in the development of atomio er.ergy. And, bringing th bubject up to date:
"The Americana know full well that the Soviet Union has the lead inIthe
development of atomic energy and its application. They also realized that
the USSR knows the method for the roduction of the now hydrogen bomb and
that it commands the reeovrcee necessary for its mnnufac ura.
Implying the same thing, a NEUZS D "t'SOBL.ND (Communist) article distributed by ADN
finds it "true that the peril of war is heightened immensely by the decision of the
U.S. Government; but Le -woo soya t;ht' wind shell :'cep the whirlwind
THE DECISIVE M1T.ITAR7 Wy-PTANC1 OF 14ANPOWER: Than, from Radio Leipzig, comes an
equally :are typo o,f impliedeouncer-threat--that based on "manpower." "For in spite
of all this feverish development of the means of macs destruction," it iclaimed
th& "they (Americans, like forty.:. ~~orotar : J ; r _ e:~t+ l R:1J lsadod in a rcadhouso)
know very well the y1 a xa_? aanrtot ue. deniden rbytneae WtCponsE but only the use of
meta over. And the amen who could be ,iced for auon iperatione are not on the aide of
ti ee w?.th fa ve!,ted'linttr rt 1r", s;:',' " excm' :[: led by t::c. ::`:up= n:i +rorkere
who refuse, to unload Ameri,,es_ they are allegedly on the side of
the worldvid.e "peace movements" Fm:' "nat3or_ ::_ liberation movements" which are rallying
around the b,~viet Union,
Thus, capita the future Amera.oen "il,orror stones" aga'.:iet which Radio Leipzig's listeners
are warned, this now, attempt at "iiutimidation" and "bluff" will "Lieet with the same
failure as the form7r atomic bomb policy."
K Leipzig also reports theAmerican Communist charge tUa the decision bypassed the
American people' and! was arrived. at "without public debate."
But in a later broadcast, Laiptig charges that, to *date, the U.S. has used all aorta
f subterfuges to arado..the Soviet Union's demand-for unconditional outlawing of all
any of mete deatzcation. "The rraeon 14 that the U.S. needs a bogey.. to persuade
. nkriad. ,... rJ S.
ppa?
FtESTIiTCam J;n
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Approved For Release 2008/03/03: CIA-RDP80-00809A000500730139-4