FAMILIAR WATERS

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 61, Issue 19, 2 November 1940, Page 3

FAMILIAR WATERS

THE NAVY’S WORK OFF GREECE. LORD CHATFIELD’S VIEWS. (United Press Association—Copyright) LONDON, October 31. Listeners to the 8.8. C. “War Commentaries” to-night heard with interest the former First Sea Lord (Admiral of the Fleet Lord Chatfield) answer his own question, which came towards the end of his address: ‘What will be the effect, on our fleet of tho responsibilities of implementing onr guarantee to Greece?” he asked. Lord Chatfield said '“Obviously that will be considerable. The Greek Nhvy consists of a cruiser, 23 torpedo craft, and six submarines. They are well trained and will pla-j their part side by side with ours. Italy, by invading Greece through Albania, can maintain her armies by the short sea route across the Adriatic—not an easy sea for our fleet to operate in —. but always there are possibilities of nigivt actions. “If Italy plans to extend her operations by sea to the Greek islands, our fleet may bo given that opportunity to strike, which it has waited for. The law r s of strategy teach you to seek out your enemy’s weak spot, and those sea and air forces w;hich w r e can spare from the defence of these islands against Germany should enable us to strike some violent blows against Italy. “Now, Italy’s objects may be to divide our military forces and so weaken our resistance in Egypt, but sea and air power will be of more value to help Greece than a largo army sent to Salonika, with all that it means in transport and supply. “The waters of Greece are no new battleground for us. Thanks to Greek hospitality, our navy has for years exercised there. Her harbours and islands have valuable strategic points well known to sailors, which we shai! doubtless use, but one must remember that bases cannot be improvised so simply or so rapidly as before, for they have to he defended against air ami submarine attacks.

“It is too early in Italy’s new adventure, however, to discuss such matters,” Lord Chatfield said. “I obviously cannot give you 'a comparative statement of the forces in the Mediterranean, but we have concentrated/ there a fleet under Admiral Cunningham, able, by its efficiency, to contain the Italian Fleet, to guard the Straits of Gibraltar and to hold the Straits of Gibraltar and to protect the Suez Canal. Fighting in the narrow waters of the- Mediterranean, the fleet had gradually to take the measure of its Italian opponents, by testing their ' fighting capacity.” There Lord Chatfield left it.

As Minister for the C‘o-o*rdination of Defence during the many arduous months before Mr Chamberlain’s resignation, it is significant that Lord Chatfield began with the assertion that “the laws of sea. power have not so faxbeen vitally modified by submarine warfare.” He added, however, that this loss of the Channel ports having enabled the enemy to mount coastal batteries at the narrows, the passage of convoys there from being a routine traffic problem had become a naval operation. Lord Chatfield said, however, “Neverthless our trade continues to flow along this route, which the enemy has done his utmost to. deny xis.”—British Official Wireless.