FRENCH PROTEST

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 21980, 26 March 1946, Page 7

FRENCH PROTEST

SMALL SHARE OF COAL EXPORTS FROM GERMANY FIRM POLICY ON RUHR (9a.m.) LONDON March 25. The French Government: was stupetied to find that only 316.000 tons of the 1.12?,000 tons of coal to be exported from Germany in the last six months of 1946 would be available for France, said the President, M. Gouin, in a speech at Strasbourg. “I say plainly that this decision is unacceptable to French economy." he said. "We are being placed in a position of inferiority to Germany. It seems that priority is given to those nations

who wanted the war and the Germans, having loosed the catastrophe on the world, benefits from favoured treatment, enabling her to recover before her victims.” Coal at present was the principal shortage from which France’s economy suffered. France could easily return to the 1938 production level if this shortage were overcome. International Control Urged M. Gouin urged the long-term occulation of Germany and international control of the Ruhr, on which France would neither compromise nor bargain. The fate of the world would again depend on the Rhine unless the nations decided on coherent and solid internationalisation of the war potential represented by the Ruhr coal. Referring to the loan which France is seeking from America, M. Gouin said it was neither an easy way out nor compensation for the insufficiencies of her own economy. It was exclusively intended to increase French production by the rapid introduction of equipment and raw materials. M. Blum's mission was to make the Americans understand the French desire to enter as quickly as possible the field of international trade. M. Gouin said it would be futile not to recognise the importance and gravity of the difficulties that the United Nations’ Organisation was encountering. He declared: "France’s duty in such circumstances —and she will not fail in it —is to bring everything into play inside UNO that will dispel the cloud threatening to black out the bright dawn of our victory.”