PEACE POINTS.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 95, 23 April 1928, Page 7

PEACE POINTS.

FRENCH NOTE.

Plan For Multilateral

Pact.

PROPOSAL TO ALL POWERS.

(Australian Press Assn.—United Service.)

PARIS, April 22.

The following is a summary of the text of the latest French plan for a multilateral pact to outlaw war

(1) The signatories, without endangering their legitimate rights of defence within the limits of existing treaties, condemn recourse to war and renounce it as an instrument of national policy or of personal, spontaneous independent political action in which they take the initiative, but not as an action in which they find themselves involved by the application of a treaty such as the Covenant of the League of Nations, or any other treaty registered with the League.

They engage themselves under these conditions not to attack one another and not to invade one another's territory.

(2) All disputes and differences shall be settled entirely by peaceful means.

(3) Any breach of the treaty shall release the signatories from their obligations in regard to the guilty party.

(4) The present treaty shall in no way nullify the obligations consequent upon previous treaties.

(5) The treaty will be proposed to all the Powers and will only become binding after its unanimous acceptance, unless an agreement to the contrary is reached.

BRITAIN'S PART.

Practical Steps Towards

Disarmament.

STRENGTH REDUCED

(British Official Wireless.) (Received 12 noon.)

RUGBY, April 22

Lord Cushendun, speaking at the League of Nations Union meeting last night, expressed his disappointment that more had not been done in progressive international disarmament. He emphasised, however, that without waiting for any international agreement Britain had, for economy and other reasons, already carried out a large measure of reduction.

This reduction was particularly notable in the personnel of the navy in the tonnage of ships and in dockyards. It might well be argued that Britain's reductions in the fighting strength of the three services had amply carried out the obligations to reduce her armaments to the lowest level consistent with public safety. But Britain had offered to go further and was ready to do more as soon as agreement with other nations was reached.

One of the great obstacles at Geneva was the different views taken by the nations on conscription, but he had* faith that a very much larger measure of disarmament would be accomplished, although in itself that was not the only factor in maintaining peace.

GERMAN OPINION.

NIGGLING RESERVATIONS

(Australian and N.Z. Press Association.) BERLIN, April 22.

The official spokesman of the German Foreign Office says the French draft pact seems to be an attempt to weave niggling reservations into the proposals made by the United States, and that it is calculated to weaken their moral effect. Such finesse was an unsuitable method of realising the project which Germany had welcomed.