FROM WEEK TO WEEK

Grey River Argus, 18 April 1940, Page 10

FROM WEEK TO WEEK

By

H. WINSTON RHODES.

The Northern Front: ! ' The sudden and dramatic events which have taken place recently necessitate one important correction to my remarks of last week. The stale-■ mate is broken. It is true that it is not broken by any change in tire s.tuation on the Western Front, but by I lie creation of a northern front. Did Hitler, by the choice of a new battleground, accept the invitation tp come out and light? This would not, be quite correct. Did the Allies take steps which would lead to the creation of another front? This would seem to be near to the truth, but yet not qu.te the whole story- I One or two remarks may help to throw some light on the situation m the north, although, in the absence el precise information it. might be wise to refrain from comment. It is certain that Hitler and the German High Command had long ago prepared plans for the invasion of Denmarx and Norway. Since 1935 Denmark lias bsen within Hitler’s grasp, but for many reasons the time was nor vet ripe for Germany to take full control Because of its military -.veaK-, ness and strategic posrJon Norway was, from the pome or view of Germany, the easiest country among the western neutrals to invade. ' Whoever first obtained a footing in Norway would gain control over Swedish iron ore shipped through Norwegian ports, especially Narvik, 'ffid would also have a very important base tor naval and aerial attack. Both the i Allies and Germany could be accused by any impartial commentator of nt-1 tempi s to break down Norwagiau neutrality. Good and bad reason? can be discovered in any attempt to defend the actions of the Allies and ol Germany, but we do know that the Allies sowed mines in Norwegian territorial waters and Germany, invaded Norway. It is fair to say also that, whether or not Germany intended to invade Norway, her decision was hastened by the manner in which tn e Allies were slowly and steadily turning Norwegian neutrality into a fiction., A battleground has now been, created which does not necessarily involve the danger of wholesale reprisals by the main belligerent countries on tne territory of their enemies. There is littie doubt that much of the hesitancy to come to grips which has been shown in the first seven months of the war has been due to the fact that a large-scale air attack on one count!.\ would be followed by a large-scale air attack on the other. No one likes destroying the property of another if it involves the destruction ol his own. There has been no Barcelona in inis ; war because the sides have been fairly evenly matched. But the situation is now changed. If we look at it in a cold-blooded fashion it can be said that the fight can now take ph.ee over the corpse of a small neutral country which tried desperately to keep out of the war and received only abuse tor her attempts. The war is beginning !tc spread.

The Victories in the North: j We live from hand to mouth ano few think of what goes before or at-, ter the event of the moment. The' dangers of success are already he-, coming obvious. However, although! much may be changed by the time] Ibis appears in print, at the present] the facts seem to show that if the honours are with the British Navy, I Germany has risked much and with] great daring in the hope*of tremendous strategic gains. By the combina-] tion of swift attack, fifth column work and naval enterprise amounting to foolhardiness, the control of the main towns in South Norway na» passed to the Nazis. Troops and supplies are still being landed and will not be easy to dislodge. If the occupation of Norway can be maintained for any length of time the strategic gain will soon become unpleasantly obvious, but the loss of important vessels to a weak navy, the fall of Narvik and the sowing of mines by the British Fleet in the Baltic itself are the chief setbacks to the German successes, and these setbacks mav. 11 true, well prove fatal.

Sweden’s Neutrality; Much depends on whether or not Germany is prepared to use Sweden in order to maintain her footing in Norway, and few would be willing to gamble much on the continued neutrality of Sweden. However, there are two factors which are of importance in this connection. One is Sweden’s military preparedness, and the other is that the Soviet Union, as well as Germany and the Allies must be interested in what happens there. It can be assumed that the Soviet Union has no desire to enter the W-m either by helping Germany through Norway, as is suggested m some quarters, nor by helping the Allies to the extent of declaring war on Germany if Sweden is invaded. Nevertheless, it would be dangerous for the Soviet Union to allow Germany to obtain complete control of the Baltic, and i* is this factor which may be most important on the preservation of Sweden’s neutrality.

The Dangers of Victory: . | But if we took upon the situation in the north from the point of view, most favourable to the Allies, it would seem clear that the destruction of a considerable portion of the German Fleet, the possibility of intensifying , the blockade of Germany, and the removal of the danger of Norway being used as a base for aerial and submarine attack on Britain and the British Fleet, will mean a severe blow, the first severe blow, to the prestige i of Hitler. This may hasten the de-| terioration of Germany’s economic system and strengthen the opposition forces inside Germany, but it may increase the danger of lightning attacks elsewhere in order to regain lost prestige and to distract the attention of the Allies. ' If the Allies win in the north it makes much more urgent _ the attempts of democratic forces inside the Allied countries to force a declaration on peace aims from their Governments. Victory, but not stalemate, in the north will bring peace nearer, but we still remember tlm last peace. A victory for the British and French military forces will not necessarily mean a victory for the British, French and German people, to say nothing of the people in other parts of the world, unless the peace which follows is a democratic peace, an anti-imp erians. peace and an anti-capitaljst peace.

Freshly chopped mint sprinkled over, salad just before serving makes an attractive change.