STATE OF EUROPE

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIV, Issue 297, 13 November 1934, Page 7

STATE OF EUROPE

PRESENT DAY DIFFICULTIES. RESPONSIBILITIES ON BRITAIN. NEED FOR SECURITY. (United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph.—Copyright.) (British Official Wireless.) Received November 13, 11.10 a.m. RUGBY, Nov. 12.

Mr R. A. Eden, speaking at Strat-ford-on-Avon, said he was not an alarmist about the future of Europe. He did not believe in the imminence of war, but no man could deny the difficulties and dangers of the present tiriie.

Britain’s responsibilities- must be shouldered, and, while supporting the League of Nations, while working for the Disarmament Conference and while seeking to strengthen a collective peace system, they could not in the interval ignore the needs of their own defence strength or the weakness of which might one day have a formidable consequence for the peace of the world. He had never believed in unilateral disarmament. Britain’s armaments must be directly related to those of other countries, and she could never be indifferent to policies in this respect which were being pursued by other nations, whether in Europe or _ elsewhere. On the other hand, the view of the National Government was that the signature of a general disarmament convention would reduce the chance of war and bring a sense of security to a distracted world.

Herr Von Jtibbentrop, President Hitler’s disarmament envoy, is expected to call on Mr Eden at the Foreign Office this afternoon.