SOVIET PEACE POLICY.

Evening Star, Issue 22273, 26 February 1936, Page 7

SOVIET PEACE POLICY.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —“Peace With Honour,” referring to ■ the British disarmament policy, presumably during the MacDonald reign, states: “1 do not ever recollect reading, during Britain’s gradual disarmament policy, that .Russia was similarly engaged,” It is unfortunate that so many people are in the very same position as “ Peace With Honour ” —interpretation of this phrase would be appreciated—but when one’ realises that their sole means of knowledge regarding international affairs is obtained from the daily Press, such letters as that signed by “ Peace With Honour are readily understandable. Your correspondent admits “we do not get a great deal of official news regarding Russia-” At least he realises there is more news, and that is something. He has a feeling that the papers have not perhaps told him everything. Getting back to this disarmament business, allow me, if you will, to present the following information ,to your correspondent:—ln 1922, when' the Soviet Government first appeared on the international official arena at the Genoa Conference, the Soviet Government startled and enraged the assembled Powers by proposing a disarmament conference. The proposal was rejected. The same fate attended the celebrated Soviet proposals, first for total disarmament in two years, then for partial disarmament, at the preparatory commission for the disarmament conference in November, 1925, and March, 1928. Both of these were brushed aside, after one of the most violent and ignorant attacks on record from the British representative, Lord Cushendun. Later, in 1932, when the conference again assembled, the American delegation moved a proposal for a 33 1-3 per cent, cut in all armaments. Once again the British representative, Sir John Simon, was the stumbling block. These successive exposures of the determination of the capitalist Governments not ito disarm, together with a steadily increasing menace on the Soviet borders, first from Japan and Poland, then Germany, forced the Soviet Government to turn to additional methods of maintaining peace. There need be no hesitation in accepting as genuine and justified the Soviet alarm at the Jap-anese-German-Polish menace. Various world authorities outside Russia have testified to this. No one, however, has as yet been able to suggest any Power that may attack England. Yet while her millions are out of work a Defence Committee is being organised to allocate the spending ,of £200,1)00,000 on armaments, to be, we are told, in a stronger position than Germany, which automatically classes Germany as an inferior Power until such time as she can raise a larger loan than £200,000 ? - 000. And so the fight goes on, until the combined armies are strong enough to perhaps—who knows?—crush Communism and eradicate once and for all the menace that dare interfere with private property and vested interests, that system, that is undoubtedly providing in one-sixth of the world basic economic justice for all.—l am, etc., February 26. S. Mulqtjeen.