EUROPEAN RELATIONSHIPS

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXV, Issue LXV, 22 December 1913, Page 5

EUROPEAN RELATIONSHIPS

. TURKEY'S POSITION.

THE POWERS IN A TANGLE y 1

IV CABLB—PBSBS ABBOCUTIOK-COFrBIOH*

| LONDON^ Dec. 20. I The Times says that despite the pacific assurances of Herr yon Beth-mann-Hollweg, the German Chancellor, and the Marquis di San Giuliani, ~the Italian, Minister of Foreign a^Lffairs. | the situation in the nearest is causLing anxiety «wing to Continental »pinlion approaching the problem from the .standpoint of .the Triple Alliance (Germany, Austria, and Italy) amd the iTriple Entente (Great Britain/ France, And Russia), instead of the standpoint, which has preserved the peace hitherto.

The difficulty is accentuated by Germany asking the other parties to the Triple Alliance to give a concerted answer to the British Note. Italy and Austria agree regarding Southern Albania and the Adriatic, but Italy is unwilling to assent to Sir Edward Grey's assumption that the treaty of Lausanne has been fulfilled, necessitating the immediate return of the Aegean Islands to Turkey. France ;is suspicious that Italy means to> retain: her hold 'of the Aegean Islands after they are nominally returned to Turkey, though France accepts the Marquis di San Giuliani's assurance that the Triple Alliance.4ias not I been modified. She fears that a military or naval convention attached thereto may have been / altered to Prance's disadvantage in the Mediterranean.' France is irritated by Russia's hesitancy regarding a German commanding at Constantinople. The Times states, that Turkey has not arrived at an irrevocable.decision. Turkey should remember that Russia and France have to paralyse the Bagdad railway. Russia desires Mount Athos, under a protectorate or as an orthodox •' State, which would, involve a change in the Mediterranean balance of power as grave as Italian control j ot the Aegean Islands would involve, j Austria, fearing the development of Slav Servi'a,- is attempting to secure financial, control of the Orient railway, hoping thus to secure free access to Salonika. .