PACIFIC MENACE

New Zealand Herald, Volume 79, Issue 24275, 16 May 1942, Page 7

PACIFIC MENACE

JAPANESE STRENGTH TURNING TO SOUTH ALLIES' NEED OF SUPPLIES (Reed. 11.16 p.m.) SYDNEY, May 15 Sailors who fought in the Coral Sea battle have landed at an Australian port. Some arrived as casualties. Others have been given shore leave. The significance of the battle continues to be widely debated and the Japanese threat to the Aus-tralia-American supply line is generally admitted to be unabated. "The strength of the forces which the Allies hammered in the Solomons and heat back in the Coral Sea," says the Sydney Morning Herald, "shows how deeply the Japanese are committed to a continuance of their southward drive, with the invasion or immobilisation of Australia as their primary aim. Dictated by Necessity "Military necessity would dictate this policy, even if ambition and appetite had been satisfied by victories and territories already won. It is in the New Guinea and New Britain area that the most pressing danger lies. There the enemy is a great and growing force." All commentators emphasise that the Japanese have certainly been steadily building up their air forces in the area, and probably their naval forces. Their struggle for air mastery over the islands is described as "protracted, bitter and costly." Emphasis is also given to the growing threat of Japanese naval forces to Australia, its outposts and its supply lines. "Wishful Thinking" A cablegram from London says that in an article in the Daily Mail, Sir Keith Murdoch, managing-director of the Herald and Weekly Times, Melbourne, says: "The importance of the Coral Sea battle lies, firstly, in the greater significance that must be allotted to aircraft-carriers, and, secondly, in the fact that the battle showed that Japan is turning with great weight upon Australia and New Zealand. Australia must have urgently replacements and large supplies. Too little and too late would never be forgiven. "Again, I believe that too much wishful thinking is still going on in circles distant from the Pacific, especially in Washington, and the facts put bluntly by General Mac Arthur are not allowed to carry full weight." The Daily Mail in a leading article says: "The battle marked a definite stage in- the Pacific war. The tide of Japanese aggression has flowed everywhere and covered every territorial objective. Now, for the first time, it has been checked. "Dare Not Stop" "Japan dare not stop. She is capable of attacking India and Australia simultaneously. Her operations on the Burma Road are probably designed to secure her rear for an assault on India. "Undoubtedly, Japan has calculated an attack on Vladivostok, Siberia and the Aleutian Islands, but this must be done this year to stand any chance of success. Much depends, of on the Russian war and the determination of the United Nations to strike back hard and swiftly from India and Australia."