WASHINGTON CONFERENCE.

Press, Volume LVII, Issue 17259, 24 September 1921, Page 11

WASHINGTON CONFERENCE.

BRITAIN, AMERICA, AND JAPAN. STATEMENT BY VISCOUNT KATO.

(By Cable—Press Association—Copyrifht' (Australian and »'.Z. Cable Association) TOKYO, September 21. Viscount K/10, in a speech, declared that tho prime motive of the Disarmament Conference lay in the common desire of Great Britain and America to seek some agreement between themselves, and between them and Japan, in the hope of replacing the Anglo-Japan-ese Alliance. [Viscount Kato, who is leader of tho Kensei-kai Partv, was Ambassador to London in 1894-99 and 1912-13. He entered tho Japanese Foreign offic9 in 183(3 and has been three times Minister for Foreign Affairs.]

BACIAL EQUALITY. (R*eceived September 23rd, 8.40 p.m.) TO*TO, September 22. Japan has decided not to introduce the racial equality question at the Washington Conference because America lias intimated she will approve the Morris-Shidehara immigration agreement.

CHEMISTRY IN WARFARE. FRENCH EXPERT'S VIEW. (Received September 23rd,, 8.40 p.m.) LONDON, September 23. Major Lefebre, organiser of tho wartime Inter-Allied Commission of Chemical Munition Experts, writing :n the "Baily News," emphasised the danger of any nation having a monopoly of the world's supplies of potential explosives and poison gas. "I fail to see," he says, "how any attempts at disarmament at the Washington Conference or the League of Nations can he effective unless this problem is dealt with. If the disaster at Oppau serves to attract the world's attention to the hitherto ignored issue of chemical disarmament, it will have far-reaching and Beneficial results in the world-" [Part I. of the agenda of the Washington Conference deals with limitation of armaments, and makes provision for a discussion on rules for tho control of new agencies of warfare.]