871.00/12–3145: Telegram
The American Representative in Rumania (Berry) to the Secretary of State
[Received December 31—11:50 a.m.]
1031. Remy 981, December 13. The Moscow communiqué has quieted the voices of those who until yesterday urged that a regency [Page 646] replace King Michael. It has as well ended the talk that Messrs. Bratianu and Maniu soon will be prosecuted and that the political parties that they lead will be suppressed. (Remy 1005, December 21.)50
All people are pleased that an outlet has been discovered to the political impasse in which the representatives of the three Great Powers when at London had found themselves. The people are delighted that a solution has been found for the Rumanian constitutional crisis. With this, unanimity of feeling ends.
The Communists initially were disappointed and confused by the communiqué, even hesitating in authorizing its full publication. The fellow travellers with the Communists reacted as the Communists. The opposition leaders’ first reaction was of relief. They interpreted the communiqué as absolving their parties of the charge of being anti-Democratic.
Non-party people generally have indicated a considerable degree of skepticism toward Soviet good intentions. Drawing on their experience on living in Rumania during 16 months of Soviet occupation and bearing in mind that during this time the Armistice terms were warped under Soviet pressure to meet Soviet demands, they doubt that all people will be permitted to express themselves freely at elections particularly as the Soviet authorities insist on maintaining the Groza govt in office while the electorate had indicated its overwhelming distaste for the parties that support that govt (remy 956, of December 751). The most experienced of this group point out that under the terms of the communiqué the Communist Party in Rumania will continue to run the country behind the familiar façade of the Groza govt.
This is 1031; repeated Moscow as 295 and London as 124.
- Not printed; it reported that the Mission in Rumania had been reliably informed that the Council of Ministers had decided not to prosecute Maniu as a result of the findings of a commission set up to investigate the public demonstrations of November 8 (871.00/12–2145).↩
- Not printed; it reported that Maniu had informed Representative Berry on the evening of December 6 that (the Groza regime was continuing its reign of terror against the leaders and members of the opposition parties. Maniu’s home had been thoroughly searched two days before and several of his papers had been confiscated. Maniu had been reliably informed that the Groza regime was planning to dissolve the opposition parties. (871.00/12–745)↩