Sohn Sees 'Ray of Hope' For World Disarmament

Louis B. Sohn, professor of Law, told a Tocsin audience last night that "for the first time in the last 50 years there is a ray of hope" in the realm of international peace-making.

"I think we will make a great deal of progress in the next year toward general and total disarmament," Sohn said, insisting that considerably more achievements were made in the last six months than could have been expected as late as a year ago.

The Russians' new attitude toward disarmament, according to Sohn, can be attributed to their being "as scared as we are" over the dangers of nuclear war. The Soviet Union, he said, is eager to settle the arms question before the Red Chinese develop atomic weapons, as it would be easier for the Russians to persuade" Mao to agree to an arms ban before the Chinese establish a nuclear stockpile than after. It can be reasonably estimated that the Chinese will have such a stockpile within the next three years, he said.

Sohn claimed that the general agreement concerning the basic principles of disarmament which has been reached with the Soviet Union is regarded as a tremendous achievement" by the U.S. disarmament Agency.

Government Appropriations

He further pointed out that Congress has appropriated $2 million for research into the methods of achieving and maintaining an effective ban on nuclear armaments and establishing a plan for a useful international peace force. An additional $8 million is to be appropriated for the effort when definite research projects are decided upon, contrasted with the $40,000 which was allotted a year earlier.

Asked if the Defense Department might attempt to halt any real efforts for disarmament, Sohn pointed out that the Pentagon has itself created an arms control commission. The vested interest of the military, he added, can be counter-acted by the "fighting spirit" of the disarmament agency.

The real difficulty in achieving the arms ban, Sohn indicated, would be the development of an effective and practical means of inspection.