NORWAY'S HELP

Auckland Star, Volume LXXII, Issue 171, 22 July 1941, Page 9

NORWAY'S HELP

A MERCHANT NAVY I WORTH MILLION MEN PEOPLE'S GRIM RESOLVE (Norway's place in the Allied war effort is 1 discussed here by the Norwegian Prime j Minister, head of King Haakon's Government- j in-exile in England.) (By JOHAN NYGAARDSVOLD) LONDON, June 21. The battle of the Atlantic, the very crux of democracy's struggle for a free world, will reach its greatest intensity during the coming months. I am confident that we shall win that battle, and I am proud as well as confident, because I know that right in the thick of it, playing a major part in every phase of the struggle, is the Norwegian mercantile marine. Second only to the British merchant fleet on the side of the Allied democracies, and superior to any ocean-going fleet on the Axis side, the Norwegian merchant navy is—as our friends say—a decisive factor in the vital struggle to keep open the sea-lines between the American arsenal of democracy and the British fortress of freedom. The tact that to-day more than 900 Norwegian ships and more than 25,000 Norwegian seamen are able to perform such important tasks for the Allied cause is directly due to that historic decision taken by the elected representatives of the Norwegian people on the very day of the German invasion of Norway. On April 9, 1940, the Norwegiar Storting (Parliament) took a stef which I think is unique in the his tory of Parliamentary Government Face-to-face with the world's greatesi military Power, which, by its sudder and ruthless attack on our neutra country had already succeeded ir getting control of our most impor tant towns, harbours and military centres, the Storting deliberately chose a life-and-death struggle ir preference to submission.

World-Wide Rally The King and Government have acted throughout in accordance with that mandate. We fought in Norway itself for 62 days and succeeded, in conjunction with our allies, in inflicting great losses on the enemy war machine. Nazi Germany was reduced to an absolutely inferior position in sea power and lost 67,000 men. Eventually, however, we had temporarily to abandon the struggle in Norway and leave our dear fatherland. It was a hard decision to take, but we knew that in Great Britain we should have the opportunity to organise our resources and play a decisive part in the war effort of the democracies. To-day there are thousands of free Norwegians who have come as volunteers from all over the world to join the Norwegian military forces. To-day we have in Britain

the nucleus of a new army, with modern equipment, which will be ■ready to go as an expeditionary force of freedom to drive the enemy out of our land. To-day we have a new Norwegian navy, " with a larger number of ocean-going vessels than at any time before. To-day, twelve months after our tiny air force was smashed to bits in the fight in Norway, we have built up a modern Norwegian air force with seaplanes, fighters and bombers. Our forces have already seen | action. They took part in the famous Lofoten raid, as a result of which no fewer than 300 young Norwegian volunteers were brought 1 over to join the free Norwegian forces. 25,000 Men in 4,000,000-ton Fleet Recently the Royal Norwegian Navy planned and carried out a raid of its own on German occupied Norway; and day by day Norwegian warships patrol, sweep mines and serve on convoy duty in the North Sea and in the Atlantic. The first unitr, of our air force, too, are already at their action stations. But it is in the midst of the battle of the Atlantic that free Norwegians are playing their greatest part. These 25,000 sailors are daily doing what they consider their duty, regardless of the risks. In spite of mines, torpedoes and bombs they are carrying the tricolour Norwegian ensign from port to port in a ceaseless effort to supply Britain and the other Allied theatres of war with the indispensable means of existence and of continued struggle. Our 4,000.000ton fleet carries food, oil, aeroplanes, weapons and ammunition wherever , they are needed. Our tanker fleet alone, the fastest and most modern 1 in the world, is daily bringing nearly 1 half of Britain's total supplies of oil ; and gasoline safely to this country. • The well-known British periodical > "The Motor Ship" recently stated : that at the present time this tanker - fleet was worth more to democracy ; than an army of a million men. i Paying Their Own Way

) The free Norwegian forces are in - the fullest sense our own contribution to democracy, for we pay for t them ourselves. Free Norway is a i going concern. We brought our gold 1 with us from Norway and our i national bank is working together . i with us in London. All our expenses r | for military, social and administra- ; tive purposes are covered by the I income from our merchant fleet. ! With a full sense of responsibility 'for our position as Norway's constitutional authority, we are carrying out our social and economic as well as our military obligations, and we are paying interest and instalments on our public loans. Our budget for I the last year has reached a figure of over £8,000,000 sterling. The unbreakable will of the British people to carry this fight through to the bitter end; the firm attitude of the United States and President Roosevelt's clear statement that the American people intends to challenge the Nazi attempt to secure world domination; and the unyielding courage with which our own people at home are bearing up against their oppressors give us the strength not only to continue the struggle but also to work with might and main for the great goal which inspires every Norwegian heart: a world of free men.— ("Auckland Star" and N.A.N.A.)