HITLER WANTED PRESENT CONFLICT.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 100, 29 April 1940, Page 7

HITLER WANTED PRESENT CONFLICT.

WAR LIABILITY. Admission In "-Speech Of German Officer. COULD NOT WAIT TILL OLDER. Briiish OOrial Win less. (K<Vfiv«l n.wm 1 m"i;nv. April _'» X<> mil* in Hri'ain. aini ]ir.''i' I'l-w outside (irriHi-my. ever <Lml>! : UJWHJ whusp shmiHc: ■- '-c-liil :'!■■ responsibility lor the jnc-i-u; w«r. lnU h is inierosiinjr to note ihm h similar conclusion is admitted by a German officer. In spite of Ribhpntrop's claim yestci day that the Allies forced tlie «ar mi Germany a broadcast on April 20 by m (Jcrnian officer gave a different view. He said that on .larmary 24 Ih<Fuehrer, addrc—cing 7oi«i ••cnnaii- in-; about t>i i-i.niiui--ioTic<J n> oflii-ei-. slated that Gcrmam had to demand tinsame sacrifices from her soldiers as in prc\ ions wars. He F*Ki that tliis war wa« i»ound t« i.iine at. some time and the Fuehrer waited to conduct this war while still aliv. as it would 1-e cowardly t>houlder the next generation with thistnifiple. Tlii* aUo confirms Hitler's Btatonient to Sir Xovilo Henderson, former Briii-'n Ambassador k> Kerlin. that he could not wait for the war till be was older. Sunday Press Reaction. The Sunday Press reaction to ]iiW>entrop's speech is one of amurmont a; the extent and degree to which Ribbeiitrop not only departs from the truth. but "with complete abandonment reritcutler falsehoods in his a<-count of evenU leading to the German invasion of Norway. The "Sunday Times" , writes: "Xeutrals of the world will approach with natural scepticism HiWK-ntrop's fantastic attempts to demonstrate that Germany invaded Norway only in order to forestall the previously prepared invasion liv Britain.

'Ho says that on April S, vhen Britain announced the mining: of certain Norwegian waters, British forces were already being transported through the North" Sea. The question naturally presents itself, why, then, did thej- not get to Norway with or before the Germans? The answer is that in the meantime part of the British troop transport« were attacked and destroyed by the German Air Force. "The fact is. as announced last werk by the British authorities, that from first to last not a single British transport has been successfully attacked. Ribbentrop's Invention. •'■Rililiciurop has invented the destru<tioii of a non-existent transport Iwau-i* in no other way could he explain their non existence." Following the invasion of Denmark and Nor«my on April 9 by German forces, Ji.> Allies prepared a counterstroke, ft\it it was nearly a week before they could begin landing men in Norway. They were only able to do γ-o then because in early March they had collected an expeditionary force for Finland. '"Following one of the shabbiest German traditions, Kibbentrop tries to impute guilt to his victim, Norway, on the strength of alleged captured docnnicnis. This, it will be remembered, was exactly what Germany tried to do against Belgium in the last war. ''Nobody but her own credulous people and partisans was convinced then, or will l>e now. In both eases the innocent country has been scrupulously neutral, in lioth ca»es Germany has profited by its brutality to overrun and snatch, and in both she had the incredible meanness to bring a lying charge against her victims.' , Norwegian Protest. In this connection, the Swedish radin announced on Sunday morning- that a Norwegian nous agency had published a protest against this allegation of Ribhen trop — that Britain had negotiated with Norway for the acquisition of military bases in Norway. Since the outbreak of war, it is asserted, Norway made every endeavour to observe strict neutrality, and when Germany offered to help Norway again-i alleged aggression from Britain. tlie King and hi* Government and people. refused, as acceptance Mould have been inconsistent with Norway's neutrality. Norway's protest states that, therefore, she is not surprised that Germany should now try to find an excuse for her owii aggression.