BRITAIN’S WISH

Grey River Argus, 16 July 1940, Page 8

BRITAIN’S WISH

PEACE IN FAR EAST Burma Question [Aust. & N.Z. Cable Assn.J SINGAPORE, July 14. Mi S. W. Jones, acting-Governor of th;. Straits Settlement, broadcasting, said that the British Government was at present discussing certain Japanese proposals regarding the Sino-Japanese war. He added: “Believing that the Chinese, and Japanese peoples desire an honourable peace, the British Government will go to the greatest lengths to avoid seconding or prolonging the war in the Far East. Britain must be allowed to concentrate on the struggle against Hitler’s Germany, until' that struggle is won, even if the causes she has at heart must be sacrificed for a while. TOKIO, July 14. The Domei Agency reports that the Japanese Government decided to send a special envoy to the Netherlands East Indies. Britain Agreeable TO TEMPORARY BURMA TRAFFIC ” SUSPENSION. (Received July 16, 12.40 a.m.) TOKYO, July 15. Sir R. Craigie (British Ambassador) and Mr Arita (Foreign Minister), had a two-hour discussion, in which they tentatively framed sections for the proposed agreement regarding the Burma traffic. It is understood that Britain is willing to agre e to a temporary suspension. Japan is pressing for other concessions. Mr Gaimusho, in a 'statement, said: “progress has been made to-day.” A formal announcement is expected to be made soon. The'results will be cabled to London. Whereafter further conferences will be held. Chinese Reports JAPANESE DEFEATS. IN ICHANG AND HANOI. (Received July 15, 11.45 p.m.) LONDON, July 15. The Chinese Embassy at London claims that there were nearly nine thousand Japanese casualties in heavy fighting in the Ichang sector, between July 6 and July 9. It states that Chinese forces are vigorously attacking them. It adds that, in Eastern Honai, the Chinese forces have occupied points southward of Kaifeng, and captured twenty thousand “puppet” troops with Japanese equipment. Kai-Shek’s Paper CRITICISES BRITISH POLICY. (Received July 15, 10.5 p.m.) CHUNGKING, July 15. Th e official organ of the Chungking Government, the “Central Daily News,” strongly criticised Britain’s policy of appeasement, regarding Burma. It gave a warning, that if Britain accepted the Japanese demands, Japan would shortly invade Burma and India also. It emphasised' that Japan was merely bluffing. It

urged Mr Churchill to avoid falling \ into the trap. It pointed out that there was a necessity for Britain up holding her prestige. New Japanese Move TO CUT OFF CHUNGKING SUPPLIES FOREIGN CONSULS NOTIFIED (Received July 15, 9.20 p.m.) SHANGHAI, July 14. The Japanese Navy has notified the foreign Consulates that, from midnight on Monday, the J'apanese will begin military operations in the Ningpo and the Wenchow sectors. The Japanese reserve all rights to detain any vessels, and they will not assume any responsibility for damage to foreign property. This is interpreted as being another effort to cut off the supplies for' Chungking. Amoy Britons i READY TO EVACUATE (Received July 15, 5.5 p.m.) TOKIO, July 15. The newspaper “Asahi’s” special correspondent, from Amoy, has reported that British residents of Kulangsu, the International Settlement of Amoy, have completed preparation to evacuate to Manila in the event of the “worst” Anglo-Japanese relations coming about. Beer Bottle “Scrap 57 JAPANESE AND U.S.A. MARINES (Received July 15 10.20 p.m.) SHANGHAI, July 15. Three United States marines and several Japanese civilians engaged in a fight in which beer bottles were thrown at a Japanese-owned Oriental cafe last night. An official of the Japanese Embassysaid that intoxication on both sides was responsible, and that the case probably was not a serious one I | Japanese Fleet REVIEW BY EMPEROR. (Received July 15, 10.25 p.m? TOKIO. July 15. It is announced that the Emperor of Japan, aboard the battleship “Nagato,” will review the combined Japanese Fleet off Yokosuka on Thursday. The Pacific AUSTRALIAN SECURITY. SYDNEY, July 10. Two Federal Ministers have commented on Australia’s responsibility

in the Pacific.’ The Treasurer, Mr Spender, said that one main aspect of Australia’s war problem was the responsibility for maintaining her local statu s and for upholding, with New Zealand, the cause of Empire, freedom, and democracy in the southeastern Pacific regions. “Although, as we have sieen, the war can spread rapidly, there is no reason why the Pacific countries should become directly involved,” he said. “Those countries have not, I believe, any conflict of interests that cannot be resolved. On the other hand, they have an immeasurable common interest in keeping the region true to its name, and co-operat-ing to build up there a new world, free from the tragic divisions and hatreds of Europe. The policy of striving for good relations with all Pacific countries, which we have maintained and must always maintain so long as the chance is open to us, must therefore run parallel with swift preparations, not only for our own territorial defence, but to play a major part in the system of defensive strategy which would develop around us.”

The Minister of External Affairs (Mr McEwan), referring to event s in the Pacific, said that Australia woui-a continue to give all possible support to Great Britain, but home defence was her own responsibility, and must be the first consideration of the Government. The recent pronouncement the Japanese Government of its determination to regard East Asia as a correlated sphere, with Japan as the central stabilising influence, had yet to be clarified. NECESSITY FOR DEFENCE WORKS. Discussing this pronouncement, made by the Japanese Foreign Mmister, Mr Arita, last week, Mr McEwen said that Britain’s urgent preoccupation with provision for her own safety had provided the opportunity to raise delicate questions affecting East Asia and the Pacific. “The Japanese Foreign Minister’s declaration,” Mr McEwen said, “was meant to signify that Japan intends to limit strictly the influence of Western Powers in China. What else it may signify is for the moment uncertain, but clearly any suggiZtions by Japan that she believes that she has a paramount interest in the stability of a territory so close to us as French Indo-China and the Netherlands East Indies, to say nothing of the South Seas in general, must have implications of closest concern to Australia. Australia will continue to do her part in co-operation with all nations in endeavours to keep the peace in the Pacific. We cannot, however overlook the elements of insecurity in the existing situation, and it would be foolish in the extreme to neglect proper provision against these risks.”

Mr Stevens, M.L.A., the former Premier of New South Wales, was another to comment on Mr Arita’s’ pronouncement. Whatever its real meaning he said, it should havg_ “instantaneous reactions” in Australia.

“We now require two things urgently,” said Mr Stevens. “The first is the restatement and strengthening of Australia’s Pacific policy. Th e second is the most intense acceleration of cur local defence works. Not one of our neighbours in the Pacific can take apy offenc e at our application of its own philosophy of defensive preparation. While we hope—and must plan—for peace with our neighbours we cannot afford to take risks any longer.” Indo-China NO JAPANESE OCCUPATION FRANCE NEGOTIATING DIRECT (Received J*uly 15 10.25 p.m.) VICHY, July 15. It is officially announced here that France has begun direct negotiations with Japan regarding shipments of material to the Chinese Government across Indo-China. Japan has not occupied any part of Indo-China. France is now following her own Far East policy, which is an independent one, but is closely parallel to the policies of Britain and America. JAPANESE DESIGNS. FRENCH DEFENCES. ‘ Despite the strain of war finance in Europe, France till recently at any rate, had imposed no curtailment of the costly schemes for making Frencn Indo-China secure from outside attack. The benefit of such parts of these plans a s have been carried out should be seen if, as some people predict. the present advance of the Japanese forces toward the Indo-Chinese border does not stop there.

Since midsummer of 1937, say s an American correspondent writing from Hanoi, Indo-China. France has expended more than 3,000,000.00 francs on defence plans for this rich and populous colony, in addition to 800,000,000 francs raised from the IndoChinese Budget in the years 1938 and 1939

The principal reason for this expenditure, thi s writer says, was the French fear that the Japanese might one day decide to attack the colony. They were then approaching it as they advanced southward ' through China and also occupied the island of Hainan, off the northern coast of Indo-China, and about 330 miles away from the port of Kani-ranh, which the French have befen fortifying .as a naval base. Hainan is only 125 miles east of Haiphong, the main harbour of northern Indo-China Indo-China is nowadays probably the most vulnerable of the French colonies. It was always assumed in the East that if this region were attacked, the French could count on British aid from Singapore, where British and French officers held staff talks a year ago. The French capitulation to Germany and Italy, however, place K rather a different aspect on this expectation. After the outbreak of the war the French Government of Indo-China imposed heavy armaments taxes designed to produce about 280.000,000 French francs before the end of 1941. In his report to the French President last July the Minister of Colonies described the new plans for thdefence -of this colony. He announced the early doubling of

the effective forces, a large planned increase in the Air Force, inc.uding the purchase of 50 planes from the Dutch, industrial development of the country, partly to mak i e it independent of munitions shipments from France, the development of aeroplane and motor manufacturing, and the heavy fortification of Kam-ranh Bay. At that time the French Air Force in Indo-China consisted of only six squaurons, but this has since been largely increased, and a French aeroplane company is constructing a plant capable of making 150 planes and 400 motors a year.

The Colonial Ministry estimated that within one month of mobilisation orders the colony could put 100,000 well-trained and well-equipped native reservists in the field. The French problem, howewer, is that these people do not make good soldiers. In tne last war th'ey proved of little use except for cleaning up battlefields and doing coolie labour, and French officers declare that unless the native troops had a French non-commission-ed officer to every 10 men they would probably break and run under fire. The number of airfields in IndoChina is being rapidly increased on a scale that civilian flying alone would not justify and many new roads are being rushed to completion. At the beginning of the year th e territory possessed about 21,000 miles of modern roads.

In the last war Indo-China look ' advantage of French preoccupation m Europe to attempt a revolt. Such a rising is not expected nowadays. There was a time, according to the American correspondent already quot ed, when the Indo-Chinese looked to the Japanese to liberate them from Occidental domination, but now they they ar e said to prefer the idea of keeping the French to having the Japanese. When war broke out France decided that it was necessary to have a strong military man at the head of affairs in Indo-China. Therefore, the liberal and tolerant Jules Brevie was recalled and a hard-bitten officer, General Catroux, appointed in his stead. He has been busy supervising a drive for increased agricultural and mineral production. Recent happenings in France leave her colonial policy obscure. Only a few days pgo the Bordeaux Government announced the recall of General Catroux, who had said he would defend the colony. It remains to be seen whether the general will submit to th e Government, whether this Government will defend the colony should that need arise, or whether it will obey the dictates of Ger-! many and Italy, whatever they may be.