ITALY AND BALKANS

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 83, Issue 244, 16 October 1939, Page 7

ITALY AND BALKANS

CLOSER ECONOMIC RELATIONS i 1 RUSSIAN PENETRATION FEARED IB>- Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright! Received Oct. 15. 6.30 p.m. NEW YORK, Oct. 14. The New York Times Belgrade correspondent says that those in wellinformed circles believe Italy will i soon have more important economic relations with the Balkans. The Italian trade mission is expected at Belgrade on October 14. Yugoslavia reserved her decision rerecently concerning the Italian-Hun-garian-Yugoslav front, fearing it might be a manoeuvre against the Balkan Entente. The Italian Minister has given an assurance to Yugoslavia that Italy does not intend dis- t turbing the Entente. Apparently s fears that Russia may turn on the s Balkans, at least diplomatically, are t drawing Yugoslavia closer to Italy. £ Simu.taneously, it is stated without r confirmation, that the Soviet is cool s towards the prcpoied re-opening of Russian-Yugoslav diplomatic relations. c t a NEW DEFENSIVE SQUADRON t c q THE BRITISH NAVY LARGE LINERS BEING FITTED OUT. i British Official Wireless I Received Oct. 15, 6.30 p.m. RUGBY, Oct. 14. The most recent addition to the British Navy is a 15,000-ton luxury liner, which is being converted into an armed merchantman, ready to deal c with enemy raiders above or below the sea’s surface. She is only one of 1 a number of big merchant vessels c fitted out as armed merchant cruisers - to form a new defensive squadron for v the Royal Navy. At the same time a c number of smaller craft is being fitted 1 with guns for purely defensive mea- s sures. In conformity with international law, they .have guns aft so that 1 they cannot fii’e from an attacking , position. According to an Air Ministry statement, poor flying conditions during -s the past week caused only a slight f interruption to convoy work by the reconnaissance aircraft of the coastal c command. Aircraft guarding convoys 1 have been only withdrawn when fly- v ing is impossible through bad visibil- $ ity and rain storms, which have caused aircraft to fly at times close above the waves. Under th* 5 protec- * tion of air anti-submarine patrols, and r naval escorts, thousands of tons of r vital supplies have been shipped safely r to Britain. All convoys arriving or * leaving now receive air protection which may extend hundreds of miles c out to sea. c 1 FRENCH AIR HEROES , | i ENGAGEMENTS WITH ENEMY i i ; THREE PLANES DESTROYED j LONDON. Oct. 13. 1 A Fiench airman, diving in succes- J sion on three Messerscnmidts which were about to land at an aerodrome, ! crashed them all, states the Paris cor- J respondent of The Times. 1 A reconnaissance machine in charge ( of a pilot and observer encountered 1 three enemy planes which killed the 1 pilot and twice wounded the observer < who, before he died, managed to land 1 behind the French lines with his photographs in tact. The Germans attacked and set fire : fo the third reconnaisseur and killed the observer as he parachuted to . earth. The pilot landed the machine 1 in his own lines and saved the photo- ; graphs despite severe burns. NAZIS ADMIT LOSSES _ I British Official Wireless. | RUGBY, Oct. 13. ] The Admiralty announces that the ( German information service has now admitted that after the attack on British naval forces in the North Sea on Monday, four of their planes fell into the sea and two made forced landings in Danish territory. FRENCH NAVY’S LOSS EXPLOSION ON CRUISER Received Oct. 14, 5.5 p.m. LONDON, Oct. 13. The ten-year-old French cruiser 1 Toru D’Augvergne caught fire and ', blew up at Casablanca last month. j Between 100 and 200 of the crew j were killed. , j SUBMARINES IN CARIBBEAN I SUPPLIES FROM SHIPS LX ' MEXICAN PORTS? t Received Oct. 15, 6.30 p.m. 1 NEW YORK, Oct. 14. J The New York Times Mexico City ‘ correspondent states that there is no doubt that one or more submarines are ready to operate in the Caribbean Sea. Reports that German ships in Mexico are aiding submarines caused an official watch on the Columbus, which moved to an isolated anchorage. The crew have been placed on short rations, despite the heavy loading of stores. Two boats alongside can be used at night to carry provisions to sea. The tanker Ennyfriedrich. anchored at Port Tampico, is loading oil and livestock, supposedly 1 for delivery to German craft. j Officials state they are ready to act 4 with severity if there is evidence of ; violation of neutrality. —.„ - j