ALL EYES ON LONDON

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20930, 21 January 1930, Page 9

ALL EYES ON LONDON

DELEGATIONS ASSEMBLE. MANY BARRIERS TO SURMOUNT. A HOPEFUL ATMOSPHERE. I (British Official Wireless.) (United Press Association.) (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright.) . RUGBY, January 19. -RL Bnand and M. Leygues, the French Foreign Minister and Minister of Marine respectively, arrived in London yesterday evening to attend the Naval Conference. M, Tardieu (French Prime Minister) , who had been delayed at The Hague Conference, arrived this morning, and M. Pietri (French Colonial Minister) arrived this afternoon. ■ .All the delegations to the conference are therefore now here. During the week-end members of the delegations paid courtesy visits to one another, and informal exchanges of opinions of a tentative kind have taken place. • THE FRENCH DELEGATION. STATEMENT BY LEADER. LONDON, January 19. M. Briand has arrived in London. He expressed the opinion that the conference was facing a difficult problem, stating: “There will be as much to do outside as inside the conference room. I am to return to Paris within 10 days after the appointment of the Expert Committees, thereafter M, Tardieu and I shall alternate between London and Paris.” LEADER OF AMERICANS. STATEMENT TO PRESSMEN. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, January 18. M. Stimson, the . chief ‘ American delegate to the Naval Conference, met large gathering of press representatives yesterday evening, and made a short informal statement. He remarked that the lauding of the American delegation at Plymouth, a town which had peculiarly, interesting associations for Americans, was a good omen for the future. He said his private talk with Mr MacDonald had been very pleasant, and .added that the American delegates would call formally on the Prime Minister at 10 Downing street. to-day. He intended to meet the delegates of the other Powers before the conference, and would/probably meet the representatives of France and Italy to-morrow. The American delegates were full of hope that the conference would be successful. FIRST WORK OF CONFERENCE. SETTLEMENT OF PROCEDURE. LONDON, January 19. The first effective work of the Naval Conference will be done on Monday morning, when the heads of the delegations will meet to settle the procedure for postponing the session. ABOLITION OF SUBMARINES. FRANCE AND JAPAN OPPOSED. LONDON, January 19. The Observer’s diplpmatie writer sets out the main controversial issues:— First, France and Japan are rigidly opposed to the Anglo-American desire for the abolition of the submarine; second, Japan is likely to soften the opposition to the abolition of submarines to a certain extent If the British Empire and the United States will "do the same to Japan’s claim for the 10-10-7 ratio instead of the 5-4-3 ratio for cruisers; third, should Italy’s demand for parity with France be discontinued there ,is a rumour that Signor Grandi contemplates an early gesture similar to M. Litvinoff’s at Geneva in favour of total abolition of navies. It is considered that Italy may ultimately make such a demand if parity with France is unobtainable by other means. THE CHURCH’S LEAD. A DISARMAMENT SERMON. , , LONDON,. January 20. (Received Jan. 21, at 1.60 a.m.) The Bishop of Ripon, preaching a special disarmament sermon at Westminster Abbey which was intended to be the church’s lead to the conference delegates, said that the stage was set for an international conference of greater moment than any since 1910, and the results would be judged in the light of the pact of Paris, that solemn renunciation of war as an instrument of national policy. “ If, after signing the pact, the,great naval Powers, with every motive for reducing expenditure on armaments, yet find themselves unable to do so, it will obviously mean one- thing, and that is that they, might just as well proclaim the pact of Paris to be the scrap of paper which .cynics Lave always said- it is.”