WEAK DEFENCE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23703, 10 January 1939, Page 8

WEAK DEFENCE

AUSTRALIA AND NEW : ZEALAND URGENCY OF SITUATION FLEET NEEDED IN PACIFIC (Per United Press Association) AUCKLAND, Jan. 9. " Neither New Zealand nor Australia at the present time could defend itself for 24 hours—our unpreparedness simply invites attack.” said Sir Walter Carpenter, managing director of the Sydney trading firm of W. R. Carpenter and Co., who passed through Auckland by the Monterey on his way to Great Britain, where he said he hopes to do as much public speaking as possible upon the defence needs of New Zealand and Australia. Intense cooperation between the two Dominions and Great Britain was in his opinion the only means of providing the two countries with a guarantee of safety. One immediate result of this must be the provision of a fleet for the South Pacific of sufficient strength to deter any country from entertaining ideas of conquest. Japan’s Chance “At the present time,” Sir Walter said, “ both our countries are playing with the subject of defence. Australia speaks of a force of 75,000 men, but with our coastline they could not keep an invader from getting a good footing in the country for 75 minutes. As for New Zealand, it would be bottled up in a day, and with its export trade gone it would be strangled, even if it could prevent a direct attack. ■ , ■ >: “ I think I know something of the Japanese,” Sir Walter said. “ I have lived with them and worked with them, and the trading activities of my firm among the South Pacific islands have given me no cause for altering my belief that, if Britain becomes embroiled with Germany and Italy, we would have a large Japanese force down here in a very fhort time. I know that while the Japanese are all right as servants, they make bad masters. At present not even Singapore could stop Japan from doing what she liked with us, and the quicker we wake up to that fact the better, especially since the position in Europe is no better than it was.”

Huge Defence Loan

It was obvious, he said, that New Zealand had little money with which to defend itself. Even if it meant raising a loan in London, however, he thought it was essential for the Dominion to find at least £50,000,000 toward the establishment of an adequate fleet and Air Force for the South Pacific. , This would mean saddling the country , with annual payments of about £3,500,000, but in his opinion it should be realised that, the time was long since past when the two dominions could afford to count the financial cost.

Unless the people of both countries realised the urgent need for helping their Governments, and even for providing them, with the impetus, Sir Walter concluded, they would wake up one, day and ; find any such .effort, was too late. ~r ■