HOPES OF NAVAL AGREEMENT.

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 18541, 11 April 1930, Page 9

HOPES OF NAVAL AGREEMENT.

Conversations In London. DEFINITE PROGRESS REPORTED. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, April 9. To-day’s conversations between the naval delegates, which were arranged in the hope that the chances of a Five-Power Agreement might thereby be reviewed, were somewhat impeded by the illness of Signor Grandi. Nevertheless, the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary, Mr Arthur Henderson, had a long meeting with the Italian Ambassador, Signor Bordonaro, and Signor Rossi, in the course of the day, and this evening the French and United Kingdom delegations also met. After the latter meeting, which was held in the Prime Minister’s room at the House of Commons, a brief communique announced that the development of the conversations of the last twenty-four hours had been examined, and that a further meeting would take place to-morrow. It is understood that this meeting dealt mainly with statistics, as did also the conversation earlier in the day between Mr A. V. Alexander and M. Dumesnil, the heads respectively, of the British and French Admiralties.

Meanwhile, progress was being made with other spheres of the Conference’s ; work. British, American and Japanese experts, who have been examining the reservations of the Japanese Government to the proposals sent to Tokio as part of the potential Five-Power Pact, reached a general agreement on most points at a meeting to-day, and will to-morrow deal with one or two matters still outstanding. The special sub-committee appointed by the First Committee to consider the question of aircraft carriers also met to-day under the chairmanship of Mr Alexander, First Lord of the Admiralty. It was agreed "that the generic term aircraft carrier for the purposes of the present agreement should comprehend firstly aircraft carriers of over 10,000 tons standard displacement, as defined in the Treaty between the United States, the British Empire, France, Italy and Japan, limiting naval armament, which was signed at Washington on February 6, 1922; and, secondly .other surface vessels of war of standard displacement, not exceeding 10,000 tons, designed for the specific and exclusive purpose of conveying aircraft, and so constructed that aircraft can be launched therefrom and landed thereon. Such vessels shall not carry guns with a calibre in excess of 6in.” These vessels will go into the aircraft carrier category, while all other vessels built to carry aeroplanes, or seaplanes, are to be charged against the appropriate combatant category according to their size and armaments.

* Replying to questions in the House of Commons, Mr Henderson, Foreign Secretary, said that he hoped to be able to make a statement regarding the progress of negotiations with the Soviet Ambassador in the near future.

FADING HOPE OF SUCCESS. THREE-POWER PACT LIKELY. (United Press Association—By Eiectrlo Telegraph—Copyright.) (Received April 10, 7.25 p.m.) LONDON, April 10. Though Signor Grandi’s cold is regarded by many as a diplomatic indisposition, given as the reason for the non-progress of the security negotiations to-day, the English, American and Italian delegations now admit that little hope remains of a FivePower Pact. One observer described it as a corpse though the announcement of death was still withheld. Three-Power Agreement. The last differences in the way of a Three-Power Agreement disappeared to-day, England and America agreeing to Japan’s request to accelerate cruiser and destroyer building, in order to keep the dockyards employed, Japan undertaking not to accelerate her submarine programme.