FOREIGN POLICY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22389, 8 April 1936, Page 13

FOREIGN POLICY

BRITISH CABINET CRITICS IN PARLIAMENT MR. EDEN IN REPLY By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright British Wireless RUGBY, April 6 Foreign affairs were debated in the House of Commons to-day, along with other matters, on the Prime Minister's motion of procedure, arising out of the defeat of the Government last Wednesday on the question of equal pay for men and women in the Civil Service.

A question of confidence had been raised to secure a reversal of the House's previous decision. The Leader of the Opposition, Major C. R. Attlee, took occasion to attack the Government's policy both at home and abroad. Major Attlce contended that the menace of war had grown through years of inept leadership by a Government which had allowed the initiative to pass from the great Western democracies into the hands of dictators. He argued that for resistance to aggression Locarno was too narrow a basis. The whole strength of the League should be organised for the preservation of law and order. Mr. Churchill Attacks Government Sir Archibald Sinclair (Liberal) and Mr. Winston Churchill (Independent Conservative) took up Major Attlee's criticism of the Government's policy in the Italo-Abyssinian dispute, and the former spoke in favour of more resolute action on behalf of victims of aggression. Mr. Clmrchill said he thought the Government's policy had fallen between two stools and managed to secure the disadvantages of alienating Italy and encouraging Germany to illegal action without the advantage of helping any member or of vindicating the League. The lesson of this melancholy chapter, said Mr. Churchill, was that they should not intervene in such matters unless they were in earnest and prepared to carry intervention to all necessary lengths. Mr. Churchill also raised the question of colonies and German rearmament, and spoke of effects in eastern and south-eastern Europe which would follow the reformation by Germany of her western frontier.

Sanctions Against Italy The Foreign Secretary, Mr. Anthony Eden, said the important lessons to be learned from the Italo-Abvssinian dispute were that a League limited in membership was inevitably limited in effectiveness. Financial and economic sanctions could not be immediately effective if membership of the League were incomplete.

"It might be said that, viewing all that has happened," continued Mr. Eden, "we should not have attempted to stop the war. _I do not agree." Turning to recent events, the Minister recalled that Britain had supported ah oil embargo against Italy, but France had insisted upon another effort at conciliation before placing an embargo on oil. Since the acceptance of conciliation had intensified the aggression, it was the view of the British Government that either there must be real conciliation, which would result in cessation of hostilities in a given period, or the Committee of Eighteen would have to face its task again. Britain Will Take Her Share

"Whatever the final verdict might be, the responsibility must be shared by the League. We will take our share —no more and no less," added Mr. Eden.

As regards the German reply Britain could not go to a meeting of the Locarno Powers with the idea that conciliation was dead. It was essential that the German proposals should be coordinated by the League. Mr. Eden added: "If we can see by the end of the summer all the nations of Europe members of the League, a new structure of security in Western Europe replacing Locarno, and the strengthening of security elsewhere by arrangements directly controlled or supervised by the League, we shall have gained so much more security for Europe that it will be possible then to enter upon larger schemes relating to armaments, economics and the strengthening of security afforded by the Covenant itself." Bombing of Open Towns In regard to the war in Abyssinia, recent events had made it clearly desirable that the Committee of Thirteen should be called together without delay. Replying to a suggestion that a commission should be appointed to recommend a settlement of the dispute between Italy and Abyssinia, Mr. Eden recalled the fact that in September the Committee of Five had made a careful and thorough investigation into the origin of and the issues involved, and had worked out in great detail a plan for a just and equitable settlement.

Mr. Eden said that as to the bombing of open towns, in view of the importance of guarding against the violation of laws and customs of war relating to the protection of non-com-batants, the Government was making urgent representations that the complaints of the Ethiopian Government should receive immediate attention from the appropriate organ of the League.

The Government desired, by every practical means, to avert the menace of attack from the air. In the existing circumstances it considered that this could best be met by the conclusion of an air pact and limitation of air armaments.

The Foreign Secretary repeated that, whether in conjunction with an air pact or other means, the Government wpuld continue to work for the limitation of national air forces.

The House passed a motion of confidence in the Government by 361 votes to 145.