AT CANNES.

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume XXI, 11 January 1922, Page 5

AT CANNES.

REPARATIONS DISCUSSED. WIESBADEN AGREEMENT. Press Assn. —By Tel.—Copyright. CANNES, January 9. A meeting of the Finance Minister and experts decided that the Guarantees Committee should have headquarters definitely in Berlin, and its powers considerably re-inforced to enftble it to carry out strictly guarantee meas. ures whioli should be exacted from Germany. It is understood that probably the Wiesbaden agreement will be allowed to stand for three years if the Allies are allowed- to make similar agreements. ARMY OF 'K'CUPATION COSTS. The cost of the army of occupation, excluding America, will fie fixed at 220,000,000 gold marks from May, in addition to a fined sum of paper marks, the intention being that each country meet the occupation costs out of deliveries in kind. GENOA CONFERENCE. It is understood that when the Genoa Conference is called, all nations will be invited to give mutual guarantees in respect of the frontiers of immediate neighbours. SOVIET ACCEPTS INVITATION. CANNES, January 9. The, Soviet has accepted the invitation to the Genoa Conference.. M. Lenin will be unable to attend,' but says that delegates will be vested with full powers. The Germans are expected to arrive on Wednesday. GERMANY’S PAYING CAPACITY. CANNES, January 9. It is understood that experts place Germany’s paying capacity in 1922' at £134,000,000 sterling in gold and kind, which means a concession to Germany of about £42,000,000. A LIVELY AIEETING. The meeting of the Finance Ministers was lively, especially on the British proposal to transfer the reparations commission to Berlin and to suppress the Committee of Guarantees. The French desired to send the latter to Berlin, retaining the Reparations Commission at Paris. The Belegians objected on the ground of the heavy expense, and the British suggested that the chairman in Berlin should belong to a nationality other than French. AN UNFORTUNATE SPEECH. Upon this Al. Doumer made an un fortunate speech, suggesting that the British chairman would show undue leniency to Germany. The British resented the imputation. The committee’s atmosphere remains electrical. « FRANCO-BRITISH ENTENTE. CORNER STONE OF FOREIGN POLICY. CANNES, January 9. The Supreme Council spent the greater part of the day thrashing out the possibilities of a Franco-British Alliance. From the French point of view the Alliance assumed greater prominence than all other problems. The majority of French politicians regard it as a corner stone of foreign policy in the immediate future.

M. Loucheur has drawn up a definite memorandum setting out the French

It is understood that M. Briand is quite willing that Britain take the place which the United States and Britain should have occupied if the Versailles

Treaty had been carried out. M. Loucheur’s motion proposed the inclusion of the defence of Poland and other weak nations, but it is understood that Mr Lloyd George’s reply was not favourable to guaranteeing anything beyond France’s security. A high French official, summing up the position to-day, said: “We may not perhaps have a formal alliance, but there will be a solid entente, more precise than we had before. All our enemies play upon the differences between France and Britain, just as Abdul Hamid played upon the differences between the Powers 20 years ago. On the reparation question the British are showing themselves ‘tres chic’; they have shrunk from no sacrifices.” Correspondents point out that the pact must be of a character to satisfy the Dominions. It is a peace not a iwaiagreement.. FRENCH SUBMARINE DEMANDS. DROPPED IN FAVOUR OF PACT CANNES, January 10. It is semi-officially stated that if the Anglo-French pact is completed France will drop her submarine demands. GERMANY’S ACCOUNT FIXED. CANNES. January 10. Experts agreed that Germany must pay 720,000,000 gold marks, spread over the whole of 1922 instead of four months. France’s share is 139,000,000, Belgium’s the remainder. The reparations in kind for 1922 were fixed at 1,350,000,000. ADMISSION OF THE GERMANS. Cannes, yesterday. The French do not like the idea of the Germans attending the Conference, preferring to submit trms to them; but Air Lloyd George urged that they could only get at the facts by discuaion, and succeeded in swaying the Conference to listen to th Germans, the French alone dissenting.