BULGARIA AND GREECE

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LVI, 28 October 1925, Page 4

BULGARIA AND GREECE

THER.K hrs been friction on t ho Creco- j Unlifiiri;in boundary since tho first. week in August. A Commission of I lie l.eiurne nl Nations decided that in conformity with an agreement, ontered into voluntarily by Ci eece and Bulgaria and some 6'JOO Creeks living in Bulgaria must he estra«iitcd to Cveeee by the middle of this month, arid that certain Bulgarians in Creeee must he similarly eo: waved to Bulgaria. The Creek Covernment complained that the Bulgarians were making systematic efforts to terrorise the Creek inhabitants into withdrawing immediately, before they had disposed of their property, which thus would he open to confiscation. [lltreatmerit aid even murder of Creeks in Bulgaria followed. The Creek Covern-

mint sent troop,! to the Bulgarian frontier. it also ordered large supplies of 1

gjii’i.iii.-i be. nine similarly excited, and l|i ( . 1 11, i dee . iius.'(|uent'.v became disturbed and restless. As the date of enin |i|.lii.g the tea nsferonce of nationals 11 mu one count ry in the ot her approa. li jhe I'rielioii and ill feeling increased, that n is not remarkable that the .lined I'-i.i'S on either side of the but del ha. me into collision

But it. is not to be expected that there

will be .mother Balkan War. Poliitcally both Greece arid Bulgaria are in an unstable condition. Greece is ruled by a soil 1 appoint ed military government of w tii.ii < >ciierul Pangalos is the. head, and viimal 1 1 it tutor of the country. Bulgaria i.- in much the same position. Following lb- bombing outrages in April last, and 11. i attempted assassination of King B"ii-. a veritable reign of terror was meatiil hv the Tsankov Government.

whnli is very much a replica of the Pancrrilos Government of Greece. But in i either country are the political conditions such as to allow the militarists in power to contemplate war with any degree of hopefulness. Both countries arc peoimmieallv weak and financially embarrassed. A serious war would cripple either of them hopelessly, and pi nimbly lead to revolution. Of course with leader? such as Tsankov and J’unwdns tlit. expedient- of war may seem to he a necessity, if they are to continue • beii unconstitutional domination of •heir respective countries. But i| is nmri- likely that the League of Nn-

tots will lie asked to use its good offices; o settle what is in reality a difficulty '•'lnch ha., re-suited from the action of no League itself. Furthermore the be-

ginning e-f winter is the wrong time for beginning a war in the Balkans, and as the matter in dispute is. preeminently one which can he settled bv arbitration, ii is to li,. expected that the lenders on either side will follow that course.