S.E.A.T.O. Military Advisers To Meet

Press, Volume C, Issue 29469, 22 March 1961, Page 7

S.E.A.T.O. Military Advisers To Meet

BANGKOK, March 20. Major - General Sir Stephen Weir, the New Zealand representative at the South-east Asia Treaty Organisation military advisers' committee meeting which will start on Wednesday, arrived at Bangkok today. Asked what he thought of the Laos situation, he replied: “Wherever the stability of a region is threatened it causes up concern.” Questioned on recent criticism of S.E.A.T.O.’s effectiveness, Sir Stephen Weir pointed out that during the seven years S.E.A.T.O. had been operating there had been no Communist aggression in the region. Also arrived in Bangkok are the Australian representative (Vice-Admiral Sir Roy Dowling), and the French representative (Admiral Paul

Ortoll). Four more representatives are due later today. The S.E.A.T.O. SecretaryGeneral (Mr Pote Sarasin) in his annual report published in Bangkok today, said there was no reason to believe the Communist bloc’s basic unity and aim of world domination was affected by apparent disputes in tactics between Peking and Moscow. The report will be considered by the Council of Ministers of S.E.A.T.O. in Bangkok on March 27, Answering questions at a press conference, the secre-tary-general said there was "no prospect of a division between Moscow and Peking at this moment.” Referring to the civil war in Laos, which Mr Sarasin said would be the most important' item on the council agenda, the report said that “Communists and insurgents in that country had been able to strengthen their position very considerably with consequent dangers to free nations in South-east Asia.”

The Communist insurgency in South Vietnam had been intensified, the report said. An expected trade offensive from China had not developed, chiefly owing to internal difficulties,” but the economic offensive through financial and technical aid by Communist bloc countries had increased.