On Speaking Terms at Last

c,The citizens of the sleepy East German city of Erfurt could hardly recognize their surroundings. The ancient cathedral city, home of such medieval relics as an Augustinian monastery and St. Severus Church, was chosen last month as the site of the first summit meeting between the heads of government of the two rival German states. Soon afterward, hundreds of East German soldiers, police and road crews launched a giant Operation Face Lift. Fac,ades along the main streets received long-overdue coats of paint. Potholes in roads were filled. Lemons and other scarce imported items suddenly appeared in food stores.

The East Germans also tried to camouflage the feelings of their people. To avoid an overly enthusiastic reception for West German Chancellor Willy Brandt, authorities ordered workers to remain at their jobs and students to stay in class. To discourage an influx of visitors, Erfurt-bound trains were canceled and roadblocks were set up on all roads leading to the city.

Nonetheless, as Brandt stepped from his special train in Erfurt one morning last week, 3,000 East Germans had gathered. When Brandt, accompanied by East German Premier Willi Stoph (see box) walked across a square to the Hotel Erfurter Hof, the cheers began: "Willy! Willy! Willy!" When the two men stepped inside, the crowd broke through the police lines and surged across the square. Then, as if to make sure that nobody mistook which Willy they meant, they shouted: "Willy Brandt ans Fenster [Willy Brandt to the window]!" Moved to tears, Brandt briefly appeared at a third-story window.

Empty Nutshell. Inside the hotel, seated at a rectangular table covered with green baize, Stoph spoke first. In a one-hour speech, he demanded immediate West German recognition of the Communist German Democratic Republic as a separate and sovereign nation. That was not new, but he also added an old demand that West Germany thought had been abandoned: $27.3 billion in reparations for the 2,600,000 East Germans who fled to the West between 1949 and 1961, when the erection of the Berlin Wall cut escape routes.

Brandt, with a portrait of East German Communist Boss Walter Ulbricht at his back, replied that the two German states could never regard each other as foreign countries. While he did not rule out negotiations on recognition, he stressed that the proper mission of the two German states was to narrow, not to widen, the gap between them. He suggested that Bonn and East Berlin work out plans for improved communications, freer travel and cultural and athletic exchanges. Said Brandt: "Unless we make a start in these areas, contracts about normalization are going to be nothing but an empty nutshell."

Brandt warned that there were two subjects on which he was not prepared to yield. As the former mayor of West Berlin, he emphasized that he would undertake no agreement that jeopardized the city's security and economic viability. His statement was particularly significant because of the conference this week in Berlin between the Western allies and the Soviet Union over the status of the city. Brandt also declared that he would not agree to any treaty that might prevent the German people, East and West, from ultimately deciding how they wish to live together.

Promising Point. After nearly two hours of talks, Brandt and Stoph relaxed a bit over an excellent luncheon of Harz mountain trout and veal cutlets, washed down by three different wines. Later, the two met alone for two more hours. Stoph, who reportedly conferred by telephone with Ulbricht before the final talk with Brandt, refused to budge from his earlier position.

Even so, the promising point was that Stoph agreed that the dialogue should continue. The next meeting is set for May 21 in the West German city of Kassel. On his return to Bonn, Brandt immediately reported to the Bundestag on his trip. "It was a beginning," he said. "We cannot know whether relations between the two Germanys will be improved in the future, but at least we can try." He might have added that for the first time since World War II, the two halves of Germany were at last on speaking terms.

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