NAVAL POWERS

Southland Times, Issue 25367, 20 August 1935, Page 7

NAVAL POWERS

PROPOSED CONFERENCE.

(British Official Wireless.) Rugby. August 16.

It is understood the British Government communicated some w-eeks ago with the other signatories of the Washington and London naval treaties, the United States, Japan, France and Italy, an outline of its views atnd aims with regard to speeding up the preparations for a five-Power naval conference which is required to be held under the Washington Naval Treaty before the end of the year. The Government proposed that the bilateral conversations should be pushed forward and concluded as soon as possible and thereafter it might be possible to widen the scope of the conversations, which might become multilateral. It was suggested that these conversations might be held in London in October. No replies to these suggestions have been received and no invitations to such a preliminary conference will be issued until it is clear whether it could usefully meet. As proposed under the Washington Treaty, it falls to the United States Government to issue invitations for the full and formal conference provided for in the treaty, but the view is held that London might prove a convenient centre for a meeting.