THE MIDDLE EAST

Evening Post, Volume CXXXII, Issue 3, 3 July 1941, Page 9

THE MIDDLE EAST

CHANGE IN COMMAND

ENGLISH PRESS COMMENTS

DANGER TO INDIA

(By Telegraph—Press Association— Copyright.) LONDON, July 2. "Captain Lyttelton's appointment as representative of the Wai/Office in the Middle East is a stroke of administrative imagination by Mr, Churchill," j says the "Daily Mail." "Mr. Churchill expects him to use his powers as a member of the War Cabinet on the spot, and the scope of the job depends on Captain Lyttelton. He is 47, and the youngest member of the War Cabinet. He has already demonstrated his efficiency, coolheadedness, imagination, grip of administrative detail, and 1 capacity to make decisions." The "Daily Mail," in a leader, emphasises the enormous strain on General Wavell, who has been removed from the Middle East command and is to take command in India, "General Auchinleck's career has been meteoric," it says. ■. "His appointment to' the Middle East is a bold experiment, because he has apparently had no experience in tank warfare. His only fighting command was with the Allied forces at Narvik. Captain Lyttelton has been appointed to co-ordin-ate publicity and propaganda and also ,to keep the Government in constant 'touch with events in connection with which our intelligence has been obviously faulty. The Government is preparing in good time for developiments which may follow the battles on the Russian front. Only the future can prove whether the changes are wise;." The "Daily Mail" says Captain Lyttelton and General Auchinleck are already in Cairo. GENERAL WAVELI/S LAURELS. "The Times," in a leader, says: "The Middle East Command, apart from the far-flung military Operations, has had to handle semi-political relations with Turkey, Greece, and the French colonies; secondly the reorganisation of [ civil life in Abyssinia; and thirdly the planning with the R.A.F. and the Navy of operations unparalleled in history. Moreover, the organisation of supplies has been a labour of unusual magnitude and intricacy, involving the reception of supplies from England, India, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, and the flow of supplies directly from America, which is already highly important and increasing rapidly. "All this means an immense increase and complication of the responsibilities of the Commander-in-Chief. It is ( high time that they were subdivided, and Captain Lyttelton is now entrusted with affairs which properly should be taken under civilian control." The leader concludes: "General Wavell's transfer does not deprive him of the laurels he has thoroughly earned. The Middle East Command has had setbacks. The last attack at Sollum may have been disappointing, but the past year is a shining record of achievement which will, always stand to the credit of General Wavell. If the War Cabinet decided that the change was necessary, it was fortunate in having a successor whom the army regards as one of its ablest commanders. General Auchinleck assumes the Middle East Command when it is stronger than ever and in the process of adding still further to its strength." NEW TASK IN INDIA. The "Daily Express" says in an editorial: "General Wavell is not retiring to a backwater. The danger in India is real. If the Germans overcome the Russian resistance, an advance from the Black Sea across Iran to the gateway of India may come immediately. Germany has already prepared the ground by propaganda. Nazi agents have been hard at work for years in Iran and Baluchistan, along the sandy road to India, and even in India.itself. General Wavell's task is twofold, firstly, to prepare the defence of India while there is time, and, secondly, to build up an Indian army which can augment in turn the strength of the Middle East."