The Cossacks of Freewood Acres

As a news story it rates a couple of paragraphs, no more. A brief announcement that a Russian refugee has freely decided to return to the Soviet Union: he wishes to rejoin the wife, the mother, the child he has not seen for a number of years. He is, to be sure, escorted to the ship or plane by a member of the Soviet Embassy. But there is no evidence of physical coercion, and all American officials can do is to make sure he knows what he may face when he arrives in the USSR.

There are not many of him. Of the hundreds of thousands of Iron Curtain refugees who have emigrated to the United States since 1947, an infinitesimal fraction have returned, or think of returning. Clearly, however, Soviet propagandists can, at will, put their finger on their runaway citizens in the United States, which means they have first class intelligence support, which in turn brings the matter within the purview of the Senate Internal Security Subcommittee.

PL

About the Author

Priscilla L. Buckley

Featured Tags

As a news story it rates a couple of paragraphs, no more. A brief announcement that a Russian refugee has freely decided to return to the Soviet Union: he wishes to rejoin the wife, the mother, the child he has not seen for a number of years. He is, to be sure, escorted to the ship or plane by a member of the Soviet Embassy. But there is no evidence of physical coercion, and all American officials can do is to make sure he knows what he may face when he arrives in the USSR.

There are not many of him. Of the hundreds of thousands of Iron Curtain refugees who have emigrated to the United States since 1947, an infinitesimal fraction have returned, or think of returning. Clearly, however, Soviet propagandists can, at will, put their finger on their runaway citizens in the United States, which means they have first class intelligence support, which in turn brings the matter within the purview of the Senate Internal Security Subcommittee.