THE NAVAL ARM

Feilding Star, Volume 10, Issue 4043, 28 September 1933, Page 5

THE NAVAL ARM

Britain’s Real Weakness ADMIRAL JELLICOE EXPRESSES HIS CONCERN CRUISERS AND DESTROYERS AUSTR ALI AN PROPOSALS By Telegraph—Press Assn—Copyright (Aust. and N.Z. Cable) (Received Sept. 28, 9 a.m.) London, September 2 T Lord Jellicoe in an interview, said that while he was pleased at Australia’s defence proposals they meant no increase in Australia’s modest naval strength, but simply restored that strength to effectiveness. He was much concerned over the present weakness of the British navy as a whole.

Lord Jellicoe regretted the Australian proposa] to make a destroyei flotilla of one leader and four destroyers instead of eight, which was a properly constituted flotilla fully qualified to carry out training exercises in this branch of the ser-

Rritain and Germany—the latterunder compulsion—had reduced their navies, hut all the other naval PowC'.rpj had increased theirs, or at least; had maintained wartime strength. “Since we had not enough cruisers and destroyers to convoy our merchantmen in war, what would be the position today?” asked Lord Jellicoe. “The stoppage of our sea-borne traffic would entail the Empire’s ruin.” Lord Jellicoe add<?cL that his report asked for by the Commonwealth in 1919 had been ruled out by tbe Washington decisions of 1921.