خارجي ٤٦/٦١١٦(س) "ملخصات استخباراتية سياسية أسبوعية سرية، الأرقام ٣٥٦-٤١٦، أغسطس ١٩٤٦ - نوفمبر ١٩٤٧" [ظ‎‎٣‎٢‎٧] (٩٧٨/٦٦٨)

16
has for many years been living quietly at
Boston, Mass., whence, as one of the very
few Albanian exiles favourable to the
present regime, he periodically sends tele
grams of congratulation and encourage
ment to Hoxha). With the fall of the Fan
Noli Government in 1924 Malleshova
escaped to Russia; he took a degree at
Moscow University and became a member
of the Soviet Academy of Science. As an
experienced journalist and organiser he
was afterwards a leading figure in the
underground Albanian revolutionary move
ment in France, and it was there that he
seems first to have met young Enver Hoxha,
who was then dividing his time between
attending lectures at a minor French lycee,
leading a Communist study-circle and
helping to run a cigarette kiosk. On his
return to Albania in 1943 Malleshova at
once became Hoxha's chief adviser and
“ elder statesman,’' with a special respon
sibility for L.N.Q. propaganda. Brigadier
Hodgson reported at the end of 1945 that
he was “ probably the strongest and most
single-minded man in the Government and
the real leader of the Albanian Communist
party.” He added that his Ministry was
certainly the most efficient element in the
Democratic Front Government,” and that
he was—even at that time—^definitely anti-
British. This last quality is one, however,
which he has shared with his latest set of
ministerial colleagues without exception :
all Hoxha’s former collaborators who felt
differently were carefully eliminated when
he reconstructed his Cabinet in March 1946,
preparatory to tying himself hand and foot
to Marshal Tito.
Bulgaria
The supreme contempt in which both the
British and the American Governments
are held by the Dimitrov Government
could hardly be better displayed than it is
by the fact that, with treaty ratification
already in the air and Article 2 of the Bul
garian treaty obliging the Government in
black and white to guarantee to all Bul
garian citizens the “ fundamental free
doms,” week after week has elapsed with
no Opposition newspaper at all allowed to
appear—and this in spite of repeated
protests made by our own chief representa
tives at Sofia and their United States
colleagues to the Bulgarian Prime Minister
and the Foreign Minister—not to speak of
the Deputy Chairman of the (still existing,
but hardly now functioning) Allied (Soviet)
Control Commission and the Soviet Minis
ter to Bulgaria.
M. Petkov, as leader of the Opposition,
tried to bring the matter up in the Grand
National Assembly last week, but only
succeeded in getting himself suspended
once again. The Prime Minister, in an
evasive written reply to his question, tried
to maintain that in neither of the two
instances quoted by M. Petkov had there
been any direct Government action : foi^in
the one case it was the printers who had
refused to print, while in the other it was
the distribution agency which had refused
to distribute. (Being a Government
monopoly, there was nothing very sur
prising in this !) These tactics of the Com
munists may do well enough for the
present, but if ever the Russians do really
quit Bulgaria, that is the time when they
will learn their lesson.
Turkey
President Truman’s bill for helping
Greece and Turkey was approved by
majorities heavy enough (in the Senate
67 to 23, and in the House of Representa
tives 287 to 107) to give supreme satisfac
tion in Turkish circles which had been
acutely conscious of machinations in circles
of the Left to defeat a policy obviously
directed against Soviet expansion. In
recognition of his advocacy of the Turkish
cause in Washington, the U.S. Ambassador
had the most unusual honour of being
greeted on his return to Angora by an
imposing reception committee headed by
the Foreign Minister. Similarly President
Indnii made a special visit to Istanbul
during the stay of the American squadron.
With the approval by both Houses on the
15th May of various amendments, the
Truman proposals were finally adopted,
and the Turks were justified in feeling that
in the Near East American intervention
had brought in a new era. Nevertheless,
they seem to be confident of Great Britain’s
economic recovery and to recognise that the
new era means stronger Anglo-American
cooperation, not Anglo-American rivalry.
The precise way in which the 100 million
dollars earmarked for Turkey are to be
applied will be worked out by an American
mission of twelve army officers, six naval
officers and two official economists now pro
ceeding to Turkey. There is wisdom in
the general conditions laid down by
Congress to ensure that Turkey (and
Greece) shall not squander or misapply the
windfall. The presence of American
official observers and of American press
and radio representatives should prevent
the Turks from using the money for
such follies as the £2 million Atatiirk
mausoleum, and indeed enable both
Governments to meet the inevitable criti
cisms that American funds are being