TENSION IN EAST

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 56, Issue 103, 12 February 1936, Page 5

TENSION IN EAST

FEARS OF A CLASH. ■ ■» V UNITED STATES AND JAPAN. RIVAL INTERESTS IN CHINA. (United Press Association—Copyright.) WASHINGTON, February 10. Senator Pittman (chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee) delivered in the Senate to-day an address so critical of Japanese policy that it is feared that it is likely to arouse worldwide attention. He claimed that Japan intends to close the door to China to America, “even if war is necessary to accomplish it,” and advocated American naval and air forces sufficient “to protect” American rights. “China is still an independent government, at peace with the world, and desirous of trading with us, and there is nothing in the circumstances that can legally or long physically interfere with such trade,” he said. He characterised as arrogant and impertinent the alleged statements of Admiral Takahashi on January 23 that unless the United States renounced her naval policy, aimed at the expansion and protection of her foreign trade, Japan would be forced to extend her fleet’s cruising radius to New Guinea, the Celebes, and Borneo, and establish a foothold in Formosa and the mandated South Sea islands. Senator Pittman declared that Congress would not he “bull-dozed” into the abandonment of national defence and of the protection /if - America’s legitimate foreign trade, or of her commerce with China. Senator Lewis, who recently visited Russia, joined Senator Pittman in an attack on Japan, with the novel prediction that Japan and the Soviet would form an alliance against the United States for the domination of Asia to the exclusion of American trade, and that eventually they would co-operate in seizing Alaska and the Philippines. The Military Appropriation Bill, introduced in Congress to-day, calls for the record expenditure of 572,000,000 dollars. Although of this sum 197,000,000 dollars are for non-military purposes, such as the building of waterways and other internal improvements which are handled by the War Depai'tment, the allocation for military purposes has increased by 23,000,000 dollars. Funds for the construction of 565 combat aeroplanes are included in the estimates. Admiral Takahashi, Commander of the combined Japanese naval forces, was reported by the Tokio correspondent of the “News-Chronicle” as saying at the Osaka Club on January 23: “Unless America renounces a naval policy aimed at expansion and the protection of her foreign trade, Japan will be forced to extend the cruising radius of her fleet to New Guinea, the Celebes, and Borneo, and establish footholds in Formosa and the mandated South Sea Islands.” He added that Japan’s only objective was national defence, which was an example the United States should follow. Japan’s trade advance in Manclmkuo would soon reach its limit, 'and this would make necessary expansion in the South Pacific. Admiral Takahashi diet not refer to British interests in the Pacific, although they are as extensive as America’s.