ITALY AND FRANCE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24336, 28 June 1940, Page 7

ITALY AND FRANCE

TERMS OF ARMISTICE REAL PURPOSE HIDDEN ANNEXATION*'OF AREAS (British Official Wireless) (United Press Association) (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright) RUGBY, June 26. Authoritative circles regard the terms dictated by Italy to France as deceptive. At first glance it might be thought that they are not severe, but it must be remembered that these are onlv provisions to ccver the interim period before the treaty itself is negotiated. Clearly, Italy’s object is to ensure the demilitarisation of all zenes of interest to her in the Mediterranean, and this is expressly provided for in the terms now published. Occupation (lor the moment) is limited to the line occupied by the Italian troops when the agreement comes into force, but it is assumed that the Italians intend, when the peace negotiations are un-

dertaken, to occupy all the territories they covet. To ensure that they will be able to do so they are now taking steps to render impossible any resistance in these territories. Thus the demilitarisation includes the surrender of all weapons, installations, stocks of ammunition, and the demolition of fortifications and corresponding stocks of ammunition. Further, all the land, sea and air forces in France itself are to be demobilised and disarmed within a period to be fixed, and, in addition, Italy reserves the right to demand, as a guarantee of the fulfilment of the armistice conditions, a complete or partial surrender of weapons, tanks, armoured cars, vehicles of all kinds, and munitions belonging’to those units which fought against _ the Italian troops. This last condition suggests, perhaps, that the Italian Army, while naturally anxious to disarm completely its opponents, is not averse to swelling its own stocks. The French Fleet The terms concerning those portions of the French Fleet to be placed under Italian control are similar to the terms exacted by Germany. They provide that the French Fleet is to be concentrated at ports to be indicated and demobilised and disarmed under the control of Italy and Germany. Like Germany. Italy declares that - it does not intend to use in the present war the units of the French Fleet placed under its control, and, further, that on the conclusion of peace Italy does not intend to lay claim to the French Fleet. No reliance can, of course, be placed on any German or Italian promise. Mr Churchill, yesterday in the House of Commons, asked what value we could attach to these assurances, adding that the situation was so uncertain and obscure that he would not attempt to pronounce or speculate upon it. Particular note, it is felt, should be taken of the fact that Italy will now have a full and uninterrupted right to use the port and harbour of Djibuti and the Addis-Ababa railway. The Italians, no doubt, hope by this article to keep their crumbling East African empire alive. Summing up. it is considered that the French have, by the acceptance of these specious terms—specials in the sense that they appear more lenient on the surface than, of course, in fact they are —delivered themselves hand and foot to the Italians, whose object it is in due course to annex all the metropolitan and colonial territory they can. For the moment their occupation is limited to the lines they occupy, which means a small amount of territory on the Mentone front, but this is merely a presage and guarantee of the occupations and annexations to come. THE GERMAN TERMS “HARD BUT NOT UNJUST” LONDON, June 26. The German radio declared that the terms of the armistice with France were hard, but not unjust. They were necessitated by the imperative need to secure the most favourable strategic position for continuance of the war against England. The armistice was not an interruption of the war, but termination of the struggle on the Continent. ,

The German radio announced that the Swedish steamer Piliagorthon was reported to have been torpedoed 'ff the British coast. The crew of 30 took to the boats.