COURAGE OF N.Z. TROOPS

Press, Volume LXXVII, Issue 23350, 9 June 1941, Page 6

COURAGE OF N.Z. TROOPS

Mr Fraser’s Praise PROMISE OF FUTURE AIR SUPPORT (Official War Correspondent with the N.Z.E.F.) CAIRO, June 7. In an address to New Zealanders newly settled in a desert camp after returning from the campaigns of Greece and Crete, the Prime Minister of New Zealand (the Rt. Hon. P. Fraser) said the New Zealanders’ defeat of the actual .paratroops had minimised the likelihood of such an attack ever being made on the United Kingdom. This achievement was of great importance to the Motherland. Mr Fraser said a vital lesson had been learned from Crete. He promised everything would be done to see that the fighting troops had adequate air support next time. Freshly clothed and already much rested, the troops assembled at a ceremonial parade in honour of the visit of Mr Fraser, who yesterday again spent all day with the sick and wounded men. He was impressed by the bearing and excellent spirits of the parading soldiers as he moved among them and later as they marched past. At the end of the address General B. C, Freyberg.led the force in rousing cheers for the Prime Minister. Mr Fraser said that while a fortnight ago he was expressing to the troops back from Greece the admiration of the Dominion for the wonderful rearguard action carried out there, the remaining New Zealand fighting men were confronting in Crete what turned out to be an unprecedented attack. They underwent experiences unparalleled in battle. “You returned after deeds of courage, valour, and daring that have never been surpassed, When you left Greece along with your comrades it was reported to me on all sides that while all the British and Greek troops there had done well and fought bravely, none surpassed the New Zealand division in alb respects. I was informed on the best authority that in initiative, discipline, and, co-operation you men and your comrades stood supreme. "Since then you have again added a bright page of courageous achievements to the history o| the Dominion. In Greece the ancient names of Olympus, Thermopylae, Corinth, and Piraeus became intertwined with Gallipoli, Messlnes, the ■ Somme, and Passchendaele, and now Malemi, Galatos, Suda Bay, and Sphakla as well will shine ever brightly in New Zealand history, You left many of your comrades in Greece and Crete, and our hearts go out to the relatives of those who fell and those whose fate is uncertain. In our own country the hearts of many of our people are sad and anxious, but through all runs a feeling of pride and gratitude to you who so courageously faced death, stood up to an air attack "which has never been equalled, and whose extent and violence were hot foreseen. “You were not defeated because -of any superiority in the Nazi personnel or morale, nor because of any weakening in your own ranks, in fighting determination or spirit. You were literally blasted out of , Crete by an air attack no flesh and blood could stand. You proved beyond doubt that parachute troops can be defeated. By doing that you achieved a great victory, not only for your own country, but also for the Motherland, “After what you did in Crete it is unlikely that any German parachutists will ever land in the United Kingdom. That at least was achieved.” Mr Fraser added that one of the brightest aspects of the evacuation was that the first thought of the returning officers and men as they landed was for their comrades still behind them. Mr Fraser also declared that the march by the wounded men across the island from Suda Bay to Sphakia had been an epic of determination and endurance. “I appreciate, arid the country appreciates, what you men faced, endured, and achieved. We must and we will see to it that the men who proved much more than the equal, man for man, of the armies of the Nazi tyrants will have, when they next go into the field, that adequate air support and ground equipment which will enable you to sweep the hordes of Nazism back where they came from ‘ in a crushing defeat,” said Mr Fraser in conclusion.