ULSTER AND EIRE

Grey River Argus, 17 May 1943, Page 2

ULSTER AND EIRE

QUESTION OF WAR POLICY. LONDON, May 11. The two components most important for the country' were the successful prosecution of the war and the unity of Northern Ireland and Britain, 'said Sir Basil Brooke, moving a vote of confidence in the new Ulster Cabinet. He added: ‘“lhese wil 1 always be cardinal points. The policy of the Ulster Government’s unity with Britain'is and remains our ideal. We would not have to repeat this so frequently but for the fact that our neighbour, Eire, is constantly attempting to brush it aside as nonexistent and unimportant. She asserts that ine ?order causes a division between Ulster and Eire The truth is that the border merely emphasises Ihe ’ fundamental difference between us. We intend that our unity be with Britain, not Eire. To p. elend ;.hat fundamental divergencies do not exist between us, that there is no irreconcilable conflict of loyalty, is not statesmanship—it is folly. Ulster will never allow herself to be coerced. While the people of Northern Ireland are behind me I will never consent to that. I see no reason why relations between Eire and ourselves should not be perfectly cordial on this ' basis, provided she ceases to interfere with our affairs. Eire’s attitude towards the war, which is not shared by any other country in the British Commonwealth, clearly shows how widely our ideals differ.”