LEAGUE SESSION OPENS

Taranaki Daily News, 15 June 1927, Page 7

LEAGUE SESSION OPENS

EXPERTS SIT IN COUNCIL PERPLEXITIES OF EUROPE POLITICS FORESHA DO WED By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright. Received June 14, 8.15 p.m. Geneva, June 14. The session of the Council of the League of Nations has opened, Sir Austen Chamberlain presiding. He was the first to arrive at the Palais de Nations and was quickly followed by M Briand, Dr. Stresemann, Baron Ishii and Mr. Vandervelde. The number of Foreign Secretaries present was seven. Giving point to the first subject broached, namely, the question raised by Sir Austen Chamberlain at the last session whether the yearly sessions of the Council should be reduced from four to three, Sir Eric Drummond reported that there was no administrative difficulty. He suggested January, May and September as most convenient. Sir Austen thought that all were agreed that the presence of Foreign Ministers enhanced the Council’s prestige and enabled decisions to be reached more rapidly, but he and his colleagues found it difficult to leave their posts four times a year. His suggestion appeared to have aroused needless and foolish anxiety and suspicion. He would never make any proposal calculated to impair the authority and usefulness of the Council. He suggested that decision be deferred until September, because they must have the support of both the Councily and Assembly. This was agreed to. Sitting privately, the Council considered the cost of the recent Economic Conference, upon which it is understood about half a million gold franes were spent. No donation has yet been received from the United States or Soviet Governments. M. Briand spent an hour with Dr. Stresemann discussing the evacuation of the French troops from Germany. M. Zalewski, in conference with the Press, said that the Soviet Note appeared to offer the basis of a peaceful solution with Poland. The Polish Government had already accepted three of the demands, which were in full conformity with Polish law’s. The Daily Telegraph’s diplomatic correspondent says the question has arisen whether the council should not consider the attitude of the Geneva' Conference to the Soviet in the light of Moscow’s latest deeds. The Soviet, though a non-member, has been encouraged to send representatives to the League conferences but, in the present conditions, the League owes it to itself to decide whether participation can continue to be pressed upon a non-member, which has so clearly shown that it does not recognise the practice of normal statehood. The correspondent learns that the accentuated coolness in Italian-Russian relations is likely to lead to developments at no distant date.