Speaking His Mind

For more than half a year, Charles de Gaulle has said little in a direct way about the war in Viet Nam. Last week, fresh from his grand tour of Russia, he spoke up. In a host's toast to the King and Queen of Laos on the eve of Bastille Day celebrations, De Gaulle declared that "France condemns this war."

France "can do so all the better since it withdrew its administration and military forces from Indo-China twelve years ago," he intoned, "thus leaving North Viet Nam, South Viet Nam, Cambodia and Laos complete self-determination." Thus he conveniently ignored the fact that France's withdrawal was the result of military defeat, and went on to charge that "the United States felt obliged to engage progressively its political authority and its arms wherever France withdrew."

Obviously setting up his trip to Cambodia next month, le general announced that he was ready to use his offices to bring about a Viet Nam settlement. His conditions: "the real ending of foreign intervention and the neutrality of the states in that region."

Next day, to celebrate the fall of the Bastille in 1789, the tricolor blossomed over Paris, and French emissaries around the world celebrated with champagne receptions. To the French Ambassador's garden party in Peking came Red Chinese Foreign Minister Chen Yi. Peking had already accused the Russians of collusion with Washington for a settlement in Europe that would free U.S. troops now based on the Continent to fight in Asia. For the French, Chen Yi had a toast of his own. Said he: "I am deeply convinced that so long as all the peace-loving countries and peoples of the world unite and wage a common struggle, the U.S. imperialist plan for aggression and war can be foiled and the world peace can be safeguarded. The Chinese people are ready to make joint efforts with the French people to this end."

Presumably even Charles de Gaulle would boggle at the thought of a French-Chinese military alliance.

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