Evening Post. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1922. THE CRISIS

Evening Post, Volume CIV, Issue 73, 23 September 1922, Page 6

Evening Post. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1922. THE CRISIS

"Opinion in diplomatic circles of England and France," says a message from London to-day, "is that the Near Eastern situation continues as satisfactory as possible." This official optimism has quite a paradoxical sound in the midst of so much detailed evidence that tells A far from hopeful story,-but the reconciliation is perhaps to be sought in the last two words. The situation is not declared to be satisfactory, but only "as satisfactory as possible." The condition of. a patient who has just undergone a critical operation may be precarious, but it may nevertheless be said to be as,satisfactory as possible if he is holding on as well as the circumstances allow. After the withdrawal of. France from Chanak at the very moment when her presence w^s most needed, and the definite refusal of Italy to lend a hand at all, the fact that Britain is not at war single-handed is something to be thankful for. It is still more gratifying that the principals are in conference and making good progress, and that the French Press, which previously seemed to be exulting to see Britain left in the lurch, has adopted a much less hostile tone. The "Gaulois" seems to be rather late in the day with its discovery that "peace in the Near East depends on a Franco-British agreement," but it is no small matter that the French newspaper welcomes the conference between M. Poincare aaid Lord Curzon as "a real inter-Allied one," and that it marks a great step forward towards a settlement. j

Lord Curzon is said to have expressed great astonishment at the withdrawal of France and Italy from Chanak while Britain was reinforcing her troops there. It may be that M. Poincare was equally astonished 1 at the British determination to stick to an indefensible position after her Allies had decided to give it up. He was at any rate able to confront Lord Curzon with the opinion of Marshal Foch "that Chanak could not be held in the face of a real enemy attack without 100,000 soldiers and a fleet to back them up." No layman will venture unaided to contradict such an authority, but to. prove that Chanak is indefensible is not to justify the action of France and Italy. On the other hand, the astonishment expressed by Lord Curzon is enough to convict not France and Italy alone, but Britain, of the grossest possible blundering. It is monstrous that the military value of Chanak should be under discussion between the Allies after conflicting decisions have been arrived at and acted upon. Though its military . value may be small its moral value may be great, aud the moral., value to the Turk of the divided counsels which have resulted in the responsibility for its defence being left to Britain alone at the moment when a united front was more urgently needed than ever may well make the difference between peace and war. Lord Grey may be right in' blaming Britain for sounding the alarm without consulting France, but that between them the Allies have grievously complicated a dangerous position by gross mismauagement is beyond question- It almost looks as if they had ceased to be on „, speaking terms when Mr. Lloyd George issued his call to the Empire on Saturday last.

This open 'breach roust gi'eatiy weaken the appeal which the

French Government is making to Kemal to b© reasonable. "A high-ly-placed political personage" in Paris is quoted as saying that the Government will do its best, but that "the only hope of success is to assure the Angora Government that its claims will be largely satisfied." This is probably true, but it is also true that the extent of those claims* and the force with which they will be pushed must depend in large measure on the nature of the restraint that France is able and willing to exercise. There has been a fierce struggle at Angora between the Moderates, who wish to avoid war, and the Extremists, supported by the military leaders, who are prepared to run any risk. By an overwhelming majority, the latter have won, and the result is that the Assembly has authorised Kemal to continue the war until the national aims are achieved. Nothing, says Hamid Bey, will alter Angora's decision to. occupy Thrace. Something stronger than the eloquence of the French Government or of the League of Nations will apparently be needed to check the ardour of the JCemalists. General Pelle, who has been urging them to adopt a moderate policy, "found them in an uncompromising mood," and returned with nothing done. Despite the optimism of the diplomats in London and Paris, peace appears to be hanging by as slender a thread as at any time during this perilous week. , The Kemalists have reached the neutral zone of the Dardanelles. They have demanded the right to cross the Straits in pursuit of the Greeks, and have received from General Sir Charles Harington only possible reply—that an AngloTurkish war would be the inevitable consequence of an attempt 'to* cross. They are even said to have threatened to advance unless satisfactory guarantees about Thrace are received within forty-eight hours. There is an openness about this diplomacy which may commend itself to our Labour Representation Committee, but how can Britain submit to it ? The fact that it is, only an Anglo-Turkish war, and not a war between the Turks and the Allies, of which General Harington speaks, makes Britain's position infinitely more difficult, but v does not alter her duty. If Lord Curzon had to express aston-^ ishment at the withdrawal of France and Italy from Chanak, what is he thinking of their withdrawal from Ismid and the Dardanelles neutral zones which is announced to-day? The withdrawal will, of course, further weaken the force of the friendly offices of France with the Kemalists, and it is not clear that her despatch, at Admiral Lord BeaMy's instance, of several cruisers to the Straits will materially improve the position. The Empire is faced with one of the gravest crises in its history, and the services of all the men who have come forward during the last few days with an eagerness described by Lord Jellicoe as "hardly credible" may yet be needed.