AMERICAN oil magnates have now admitted publicly that they are pressing official Wash- ington to horse-trade millions of Jewish and Arab lives in Pales- tine to protect the profits of privately-owned Middle East oil concessions. The confession was disclosed in a United Press dispatch from Saudi Arabia, which announced the King Ibn Saud, who has been sharing handsomely in the profits of the U.S.owned Arabian-Ameri- can Oil Company (Aramco) will not oust the company because of American government policy in Palestine. Aramco is seeking similar cooperation from other Arab chieftains for its projected construction of a $200 million trans-Arabian pipeline. “In return for Ibn Saud’s con- tinued friendship,” the UP re- port paraphrased an Aramco official as saying, “Aramco has redoubled its lobbying efforts in Washington to convince the government that support of (Pal- estine) partition might force abandonment of this project, potentially the greatest Ameri- can investment in any foreign country.” The UP story was dated Feb- raary 24 but publication was de- layed until February 27. On February 24, U.S. spokesman Warren Austin told the United Nations that the American gov- ernment was not prepared to enforce the partition of Palestine voted by the UN general assem- bly. The U.S., Austin said, would agree to consultation on whether Palestine bloodshed represents a “threat to the peace” but inter- preted the UN charter to bar UN enforcement of its political settle- ments. The UP report also disclosed that Aramco has appointed Wil- liam A. Eddy, former U.S. state department expert on the Middle Bast, to argue the company’s case before the U.S. government. Aramco is owned by four Ameri- can companies: Texas Oil, Stand- ard Oil of California, Standard Oil of New Jersey and Socony- Vacuum. Ibn Saud is guaranteed 23 cents for each barrel of oil pumped. The current output rate is 300, 000 barrels daily and it is expec- ted the yield. will eventually reach one million barrels daily. With taxes on the U.S. conces- sion thrown in, Ibn Saud last year earned a neat $24 million. ¢ e@ owners of Aramco have done even better. The com- pany was started in 1936 by Standard Oil Company of Cali- fornia and Texas Oil to develop the Saudi Arabian concession bought by the California com- pany for $225,000 in 1933. When the two firms sold a 40 percent interest to Standard Oil in New Jersey and Socony Vacuum in 1947 the price was $102 million. This covered the $80 million the two original companies said they had invested and the $22 million paid out in dividends, leaving Aramco completely paid for. Aramco has as subsidiaries one Canadian corporation and one Bahaman corporation which, by virtue of the incorporation out- side the U.S., pay no taxes to the American government. This fact was pointed up during the recent Senate war investigating committee study of Aramco, which disclosed the company had made huge profits at the expense of the American navy after the U.S. government supplied Saudi Arabia with lend-lease under oil_ a pressure. ’ War games in the Pacific Italy’ s new front for democracy —ROME The recent formation of Italy's ‘Democratic Popular Front is con- sidered here the most important political event since the Com- mittee of Nationa] Liberation was born out of the wartime fight against facism. First suggested by the Socialist party, the Democratic Popular Front’s real attraction was only made evident after a series. of national congresses held last No- vember and December. The first of these was the Con- gress of Joint Production Coun- cils held in Milan. Seven thous- and delegates turned out from all important factories and de- cided to set up councils in all factories. Council activity will not be of a union character but will _ éonsist of technical participation * in and control over production together with employers. Organ- izers of the Milan congress were on their own admission, taken by surprise by the enthusiasm of. the delegates. Shortly after a congress of farmers, farm workers, share- croppers and technicians was held at Bologna where there was. also an unexpectedly enthusiastic response. The conference adop- ted a precise plan for agrariam reform and established farm and homestead committees with func- tions on the land corresponding to the work of the production councils in industry. Despite opposition from em- ployers and right-wing political parties, farm and joint product- ion committee have been spring- . ing up everywhere. Two other meetings contribut- ed to proving the widespread desire for a countrywide organ- ization which ‘expressed the peo- ple’s demands. In Naples, a De- mocratiec Congress of the South drew tremendous peasant re- sponse for a program to relieve the economic backwardness of Italy’s “depresed areas.” In Fior- ence, mayors and city councillors form about 3,000 towns admister- ed by Socialists, Communists, Ac- tionists, Democratic Laborities and independents found consul tation valuable enough to was- rant’ formation of a League of Democratic Communes. The Democratic Popular Front took shape from the bottom up as a result of the ferment evident at these meetings. Key character- istic was the participation of people who had never before -shown interest in politics Suppor- ting the DPT are Socialists, Communists, Democratic Lahbor- ites, the Christian Movement for Sicilian Independence, the WNa- tional League of Cooperatives, the Union of Italian Women, the National Veterans Association. . Leadership of the DPF includes people ranging from Catholic leader Guido Maglioli to noted Selcolo and to General Secretary, Seleolo an dto Genera) Secretary, Guiseppe Di Vittorio of the Gen- eral Confederation of Labor. Truman doctrine fails in Greece Aid to Turkey too \ _ + Further American military and” economic aid to the reaction- ary regime in Greece is being linked to new aid to the equally undemocratic government of Turkey. Here Major General Luns- ford E. Oliver, U.S. army, and Brigadier General Erdelhun (right) inspect a Furkish army guard in Istanbul. FRIDAY, MARCH 5, 1948 sat : = By OLIVE SUTTON HEN General James A. Van Fleet of the U.S. Army takes his place at the hea@ of the strat- egy table in the Athens war cou- ncil, President Truman will have dragged the American people close to open war without an act of congress. Yet the appointment of a full-fledged lieutenant gen- eral to take over military com- mand in Greece is a move of des- peration, and bears out Truman’s admission in ‘his recent report: “The military situation in Greece has shown no improvement dur- ing the period under review.” Truman acknowledged that the present $300,000,000 grant was in- sufficient and that he would have to ask Congress to appropriate more money for arms and mili- tary personnel. Three recent developments have pointed up the blood-letting char acter of the Marshall - Truman Plan in Greece, The first was the hoaxed ‘“vic- tory parade” through the streets of Salonika after the Democratic Army had shelled the city and been pursued by Athens army troops under the leadership of American officers. The prisoners turned out to be not guerillas, but in fact wood cutters and charcoal workers the facist police had seiz- ed in the outskirts of the city to use for the staged parade. Press correspondents and photograph- ers were given full opportunity to cover the hysterical scene. Meanwhile, the puneeatuc Army « disclosed that the casualties of the Salonika battle were: Athens troops, 50 killed and wounded, Democratic Army, seven. wounded and three missing. The second event was the white- wash of Greek terror attempted by Clinton Golden, “CIO United Steel Workers official attached to the Griswold Mission as labor ad- : viser. American workers, however, had made f up their minds that death penalty laws for striking, court martial decrees for trade union leaders, exile and execu tions, complete suppression of trade union councils and the Confedération of Labor was hardly “fair treatment.” Their trade union representatives sent. the word to President Truman and many turned out in front of the Greek consulate in New York to protest the American- sponsored fascist policy. A third development that cast a glaring light on USS. Policy in Greece was the record of the UN Balkan Commission’s hearing in Salonika, which were the basis of the report that the guerillas received “logistical” support from Greece’s northern neighbors. Account of the testimony given by one man amply illustrates ,the unreliability and venality of the witnesses provided by the Athens regime. Spiridon Vertsayas, the witness, asserts that “Albanians or Andar- tes’ burned a Greek frontier post. _ questions him: Miller, the U.S. delegate, “Exactly where were the men who attacked your post when you saw them?” Vertsayas: Our guard stated that they came from Albanian territory. Col. Vernier (France): Who are the men who have seen the enemy in Albanian territory? Vertsayas: One of my friends, who was a guard, stated that they came from Albanian terri- tory. Col. Miller: Have you seen them there yourself? ‘Vertsayas: I have not: I was on another spot and it was night time and I could not see them. Yet, on the basis of such “evidence,” Loy W. Henderson, director of the U.S. state depart- ment’s office of Near Eastern Affairs and top expert on Greece, recently asserted: “The United States will not stand idly by while foreign aggressors deprive Greece of its territorial integrity and political independence.” This statement, regarded both as an admission that less direct American intervention has failed Col.. and a sounding out of public opinion on the critical issue of Sending American troops to Greece, drew from Senator Ed- win C. Johnson (Dem., Colorado) the retort: “I don’t believe Con- Sress should sit idly by and: let Henderson commit us to a more aggressive part in the civil war in Greece.” ” _ PACIFIC ,TRIBUNE—PAGE 6