THE "ANZAC AREA"

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24828, 30 January 1942, Page 5

THE "ANZAC AREA"

NAVAL PROTECTION GREAT DISTANCES INVOLVED (Rec. 7 p.m.) RUGBY, Jan. 28. Attention is drawn in authoritative circles in London to the enormous distances involved in the naval protection of what is now known as the "Anzac Area" in the Eastern Pacific. The distance, for example, from Sydney to Wellington is 1235 miles, which is further than from Southampton to Gibraltar, from Honolulu to Fiji 2783 miles, and from Brisbane to Adelaide 1471 miles. The strategical centre of the area is the Tasman Sea. because all the principal ports of Australia and New Zealand were upon its shores. All the vital Australian industrial populations and industries—--90 per cent. —are between Brisbane and Adelaide, while New Zealand depends for its industrial supplies from Australia on the Tasman sea a ports. The vast majority of the overseas traffic of troops, munitions and supplies leaves ports in the Tasman Sea. while the coastal shipping trade is of vital importance. One reason for the latter is the transport of raw materials, as it is impossible by rail in view of the fact that the States have different gauges, and transhipments of supplies would have to be made at State boundaries. A danger of further infiltration of Japanese along the Solomon Islands towards the south would be the establishment of bases from which surface or submarine raiders could operate against the Tasman Sea area. It is felt that the problem of distances could equally apply to the Japanese and the further the progress they made to the east the greater opportunity for the Allies to menace their line of communications.