511.6141/12–1250: Telegram
The Chargé in the Soviet Union (Barbour) to the Secretary of State 1
1175. We have been increasingly struck by what appears to be a real and growing fear of world conflict on the part of Soviet citizens. Within range our limited contacts we have heard this fear expressed frequently and vehemently. Generalizing, we believe average Soviet citizen is aware that East-West relations have been deteriorating, although he is badly informed on facts and hence finds it difficult to ascribe blame.2 Nevertheless it is doubtful whether he completely swallows official Soviet propaganda version. In this regard it is striking that we and other Western diplomats here have encountered anti-Western feeling very rarely.
If this analysis is correct, it suggests that we should endeavor to simplify our propaganda methods (Embtel 1174, December 123) directed not only to orbit but to countries such as Italy and French having large Communist parties. We should concentrate and amplify [Page 1274] calmly factual message that West does not want war and has taken every conceivable step to avoid war. We should make it clear that large Chinese contingents fighting in Korea are regular army units and not handful of devoted volunteers. Finally we should impress upon listeners fact that present situation is direct and inevitable result of Kremlin expansionist policy and that remedy is in hands of Kremlin alone.
To overcome jamming, and to avoid taint inevitably attaching to VOA and BBC, we feel we should make most intensive effort to induce other countries both in Europe and Asia to broadcast to Soviets both in Russian and in minority languages. We think these broadcasts should not be relays but should be independent factual accounts of current events. Growing use of UN materials undoubtedly would be helpful.
No doubt some or all of these thoughts have occurred to those in Department charged with planning and directing VOA. At risk of being repetitious we emphasize them because we believe present state of Soviet “public opinion” is ripe for this form of approach.
- This telegram was relayed to London, Paris, and Frankfort at 11:30 a. m. on December 12.↩
- The impression that there was a growing fear of war among the people of the Soviet Union was attributed in telegram 1215 from Moscow on December 19, not printed, to “(a) realization that world tension has been increasing, (b) memories of suffering in World War II and (c) fear of use such new weapons as atomic bomb.” It was believed that the “popular mentality is primarily defensive in nature, and that element of bellicosity does not exist on widespread scale.” The Embassy declared, however, that these generalizations expressed here and in telegram 1175 were “based upon subjective impressions which should be treated with caution.” (661.00/12–1950)↩
- Not printed.↩