WITHDRAWAL DEMAND

Evening Post, Volume CXL, Issue 74, 25 September 1945, Page 7

WITHDRAWAL DEMAND

EGYPT'S CLAM

BRITISH FRIENDSHIP SUFFICIENT

(By Telegraph—Press- Association—Copyright.) Rec. 11 a.m. LONDON, Sept. 24. Egyptian newspapers give considerable prominence to Cabinet's communique calling for the British to withdraw from Egypt, which the Prime Minister, Nokrashy Pasha, issued to correspondents, says Reuters Cairo correspondent. Egypt contends that the war proved that material guarantees for the defence of the Suez Canal are unnecessary, and that Egypt's friendship is sufficient.

Reuter points out that the BritishEgyptian Treaty is not due for revision until 1946, and may last for a further 10 years.

. A special session of the Egyptian Parliament is to be called early next month to discuss the statement by the committee of the Elder Statesmen to call for the withdrawal of the British troops and union of the AngloEgyptian Sudan with Egypt. The British Government has not yet been officially informed of the Egyptian communique calling for the withdrawal of the British forces from Egypt, says the Exchange Telegraphagency, and will not take any action unless the matter is raised officially. The international situation in no wise, justified the presence of foreign troops, said Nokrashy Pasha, referring in Alexandria to the demand for the evacuation of the British troops from Egypt. The final British evacuation, he said, would benefit both Britain and Egypt and would enable the development of long-standing friendship based oh an alliance between the two j sovereign States.

Nokrashy Pasha added that he was willing to negotiate immediately for the transformation of the AngloEgyptian Treaty into an alliance, but evacuation must be the basis'for negotiations. He expressed the opinion that all the Arab States were imbued with a feeling of friendship for' Britain, on the basis, liowever, of safeguarding individual independence and complete territorial integrity. They would welcome a revival of the French cultural and economic influence in the Mediterranean, but France should give up the idea of reviving her pre-war im-perialisi-tc policy. Italy must never again be given an opportunity to attack Egypt from African bases.

Nokrashy Pasha, said that the Government was anxious to develop purely Egyptian industries, but would welcome foreign industries and capital from Britain, America, and the Dominions, or countries like Scandinavia and Switzerland.