WITHDRAWAL

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 47, 25 February 1935, Page 7

WITHDRAWAL

FROM LEAGUE.

NOTICE SERVED.

Paraguay and Arms Embargo Decision.

BOLIVIA THE AGGRESSOR,

(•United P.A.-Electric Telegraph—Copyright)

(Received 10.30 a.m.) GENEVA, February 24. Paraguay has announced her withdrawal from the League of Nations. This will become effective after - ;wo years. A Note admits that the League is empowered to impose an arms embargo, but claims that the League has wrongly raised an embargo unilaterally, thus helping Bolivia, which Paraguay regards as the aggressor. The Note adds that Paraguay leaves the League because its expectation of equal treatment lias not been fulfilled. To-day ends the three months' grace for the adoption of the League recommendations. Henceforth Bolivia, which adopted the recommendations, is fighting a legal war and Paraguay's position is illegal.

The League of Nations committee recommended that hostilities between Bolivia and Paraguay should cease, and that a neutral zone of 62 miles wide be created. It was proposed that a committee of six should be set up to see that these recommendations were enforced, and that a peace conference be opened at Buenos Ayres. If this was unsuccessful in two months the dispute was to be referred to the Hague Court, and an advisory committee of 23 would be created at Geneva.

FORCE FOR PEACE. LEAGUE AS AN INSTRUMENT, (British Official Wireless.) (Received 1 p.m.) RUGBY, February 24. Mr. Neville Chamberlain, Chancellor of the Exchequer, speaking at Bradford, declared that Britain's strongest interest la.y in the preservation of peace. It was, he said, a cardinal point in the Government's policy to strengthen and develop the League of Nations, by all means in their power, as an instrument, and the only effective instrument, for obtaining international co-operation.

It was easy to criticise the League, Irat the remedy for its weakness was to be found not in abandoning the League ,but rather in the patient endeavour to build up its weak places, improve its methods and, if possible, make it a more efficient instrument in the future than it had been in the past.