VALUE OF NAURU TO NEW ZEALAND

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 96, 19 January 1944, Page 5

VALUE OF NAURU TO NEW ZEALAND

(Official War Correspondent, N.Z.E.F.) SOUTH PACIFIC BASE, Jan. 18.

Nauru Island, briefly mentioned by Rear-Admiral Carney at his conference with war correspondents, is of particular interest to New Zealand. Till, two years ago it exported vast quantities of phosphate to Australia aud New Zealand. Its cantilever' and other facilities for handling phosphates represented not only engineering achievements, but the outlay of a very large sum of money. Nauru first came into news prominence in this war in December, IfMO, when two German raiders operating in the vicinity of the island sank five British ships of a naggregate tonnage more than 25,000. One of the raiders, the Manyo Maru, having turned' survivors from the ships ashore on Emirau Island, returned to Nauru flying the Japanese colours and shelled the phosphate workings and shipping plant, causing considerable damage. A year later, Japanese planes bombed the island, damaging the cantilever and other installations. On August 28, 1942, Nauru was finally occupied by the Japanese, m whose hands it has continued down to the present time. The island is oval shaped and about 12 miles in circumference. Upon it the enemy has constructed airfields from which it can patrol between the Gilberts and the northern Solomons. Situated just south of the Equator, it is a key base and New Zealand will be interested in Admiral Carney’s statement that it would not be logical to expect the Allies, to permit the Japanese to hold this salient much longer. ' <