* toro THOMSON MOSCOW VE ® thi been Very impressed n ‘oe to the Soviet Lt to th Particularly with lands. V"8in lands. The are similar to the amie With which I y . lar as I farmed ; ars ago. BaCa Ite iS . lu . Be = Obvious that there Bea yh, ts Yea that ae lot of grain avail- j peiend from the fig- Jim, _ Me that there will Une to carry the Nig . | Over the coming ey. < oO Mr. Khrushchoy said € would not need he had previously a Canada. The vir- ts ; © Made tremendous Yap, Understand that 10 Ng in People there were , asin os and there was nh ay Tseli eg imines lala, WV after row, very iid h °f culture and com- Migs (,,,°%4 many of the ‘ is Could only be ex- ” Older tes that are very a7 W Ba ct we went the Beasea 7 enthusiastic and they 5, at the great pro- hitgin Re made, I am sure mS bag cnts will bé the m “tt of the Soviet ® lke "t Bt With Mr. Khrushchov a 1 ieresting, We dis- Ta problems and I at all '. Khrushchov’s re- He di times were freely Ther 'dn’t refuse any ques- Ec, iio no limitation on ‘meq Say and at all times ee to be in complete the situation. Fa 5 x Ss a Mew : iy Was xactly what his b8kpre n all these matters Ure Ssed it very clearly. ‘bea, “Verything could not More satisfactory. WwW Mee 4 Situation is quite 4 4 today. I am sure ety, S needed is more con- Lis pe peoples. I am sure Saar” British, American Mvieg tt people come to Print Union and see the attiong. for themselves, the se Ship will be display- tien don’t have wars be- i, Nds, Plies 3 Ve in our system and ord Thompson of Fleet says: liked what I saw in USSR you believe in yours. Let us hope the best system wins. We think it will be ours, but that may not be the case. But I believe that as people see each other, get to know each othér recognize each other’s problems and, above all, do busi- ness with each other, this will be a tremendous factor for the development of world peace and friendship. Sometimes there are stupid re- marks made by important per- sons in the West. But the peo- ple themselves do not want war and I’m entirely convinced they would not permit a war to de- velop. Anybody of any sense does not want a war and I am sure there is not going to be a war. On Anglo-Soviet relations I think the best thing we can do is to tell the truth and let peo- ple understand better just what the situation is here and the opinion of the Soviet people. I have been greatly impress- ed everywhere. Everywhere I’ve gone, when people greet me, al- most the first words they use In the hot areas of Uzbekistan, are “peace and friendship.” And I know this is not just a pose. I am sure this is a genuine desire. While they do not say these words as freely in my country I am certain our people feel exactly the same way. I think it’s my responsibility as a publisher of newspapers and other mass media to make this thing clear to our people and to let them know there Is a genuine desire for friendship among the Soviet people. My opinion of the Soviet Union and its progress has changed completely in the per- iod of the two trips I made here in the past two years. This has only been a matter of 18 months. But even in that time I can see great signs of progress. In stores I can see goods dis- played for sale that were not there 18 months ago. Of course the progress of building, of building flats, schools and other institutions, is quite remarkable and in this respect it is obvious Tadjikistan, and in other Soviet republics, cotton is one of the main crops. Barley is reaped and maize sowed simultaneously on the fields of the Iskra collective farm in the Krasnedar territory, that the housing situation must be getting easier, although I be- lieve there is stili a great way to go. I am cestain, from my own observation, that the standard of living in the Soviet Union has advanced considerably in the last 18 months and there is every sign it will advance still further. I am tremendously impressed with Mr. Khrushchoy. He has done a great deal to advance the standard of living of the Soviet people and I believe he has act- ed responsibly in great world crises. I believe he is an inspir- ed leader of the Soviet people. I have visited resorts in the Caucasus and Crimea. I found them well worth visiting. I am sure that if the people of our country got to know the Soviet Union a little better and the faci- lities available for holidaymak- ers, there would be many more going there. I think this is the field that we should cover very thorough- ly. Many people in Britain have seen the old resorts and I think they would welcome visiting something completely new. This is an area of contact between the peoples which should be extend- ed to our mutual advantage. Soviet Armenia and Georgia impressed me greatly. These re- publics seem to be flourishing and the people seem to be hap- py. They certainly are a most hospitable people, there ts ne question about that. I was overwhelmed with their hospitality and I think it’s a dif- ferent type of life to anything we are used to. In that respect I am sure the people of the west- ern world would get a ‘great thrill from spending a holiday in these two exotic countries. I do not know when I en- joyed anything better. I propose to bring my daughter and grand- daughter to a visit here. I want them to know more about the Soviet people because I know that in the years to come the Soviet Union, large as it is to- day, will loom even larger ‘in world affairs. I think my family and I and all people in the West should know more about the Soviet people. * * * This article was given to the Soviet news agency APN, and to Radio Moscow in the form of an interview by Canadian- born Lord Thomson of Fleet. Very hospitable people — a good place to visit Lord Thomson was impressed with Soviet holiday resorts in the Crimea and the Caucasus and says they are well worth visit- ing. The people in the republics of Georgia and Armenia, he add- ed, are “certainly the most hospitable people.” * * * These areas are nearly semi-tropical and are warm all year round. The Soviet agency Intourist offers first-class accomodation at resort hotels and rest homes at Yalta and Sochi on the Black Sea coast, and in the mountains at Gagra and Gudauta. * * * The capital of Armenia is Yerevan. Armenia, with a popu- lation of about two million, specializes in the production of non- ferrous metals and wine. * * * Georgia, with its capital Tbilisi, has a population over four million. Products include steel, silk, tea, wine and livestock. * * * A problem in the virgin lands is drought. But a 263,000,000 cubic metre underground sea was recently discovered in the north-west area of Tselinny Territory. The upper levels are good, fresh water. It has been decided to use the water for domestic purposes. : * * * One of the relatively unknown beauty spots for holidaying in the USSR is Siberia. Nearly 3,000 miles east of Moscow, over the Ural Mountains, is the ancient city of Irkutsk. About an hour’s drive from Irkutsk is Lake Baikal—one of the world’s largest fresh-water lakes. It is more than 360 miles long and 50 miles wide and is said to contain more water than the Baltic Sea. September 18, 1964—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page 5 ’