Hurried Meeting of Australain War Cabinet

Manawatu Times, Volume 66, Issue 290, 6 December 1941, Page 7

Hurried Meeting of Australain War Cabinet

AWAITING JAPAN’S REPLY IN WASHINGTON

United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph—Copyright. Received Friday, Midnight. MELBOURNE, Dec. 5.

. A hurriedly-summoned meeting of the War Cabinet to-day made certain important decisions of which the details are not announced regarding the Far Eastern situation. All the Ministers cancelled their arrangements and will remain in Melbourne over the week-end in close consultation with the service chiefs.

Mr. Curtin said later that the War Cabinet had ddbided to place an order with Britain immediately to supply a million respirator containers for the use of the civil population in the event of gas attacks. The Australian Munition Department will begin immediately the manufacture of face pieces for the containers at the rate of 40,000 weekly.

Mr. Forde (Army Minister) said all Christmas leave of soldiers in Darwin had been cancelled.

The BBC’s observer in Canberra reported that in the opinion of authoritative circles the Far Eastorn situation had become worse in the last 24 hours.

Washington reported that Admiral Nomura and Mr. Kurusu were to present Japan’s reply to-day to Mr. Cordell Hull’s request for an explanation regarding the continued reinforcement of Japanese troops in Indo-China. But, it was added, if the reply were not more satisfactory than was indicated in the bellicose attitude of the Japanese press yesterday, the interview was likely to be a very short one. It was announced from Singapore that a number of Australian-made Beaufort bombers have arrived at the naval base.

The Domei News Agency’s Tokio correspondent says the Information Board spokesman (Mr. Hori) said Japan and the United States will continue to negotiate in a “spirit of sincerity in order to find a common formula “for establishing a peaceful pacific."

Tbe Domei News Agency has circulated a statement declaring that in the Japanese view the United States Note handed to its envoys by Mr. Cordell Hull last week cannot serve as a basis for negotiations henceforth. Domei quoted observers, but the Associated Press correspondent points out that in view of the Agency’s close connection with the Government the statement may be regarded as an accurate forecast of the eventual Japanese reply to the United States.

The New York Times’ Tokio correspondent (Mr. Otto Tolischus) says the Japan jTimes-Advertiser, referring Japan’s treaty of amity with Thailand, declared that third Powers were covering their own military operations behind baseless allegations directed against Japan. It warned that the Japanese amity treaty was a two-Power front against aggression from the south which Japan would be insistently required to protect. While Washington is the diplomatic front in the Pacific question, Thailand is the physical front anad Japan has definite legal and moral rights to protection on both. The Chinese Army spokesman at Chungking said forty Japanese warships, including an aircraft-carrier with forty-five planes aboard, were recently seen at Camranh Bay. The spokesman reported that 40,000 Chinese troops had been engaged in sporadic fighting in the triangle Nanchang, Hangchow, and west of Shanghai and south of the Yangtse. No major battles occurred, but the Chinese engaged the Japanese to prevent the withdrawal of their troops north or south. Two points near Nanchang were recaptured.