ATTITUDE OF FRANCE

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27397, 9 July 1954, Page 11

ATTITUDE OF FRANCE

“War Pursued If Talks Fail” (Rec. 7 p.m.) PARIS, July 7. Mr Pierre Mendes-France, the French Prime Minister, said today that France would pursue the war in Indo-China with all the military means at her disposal if the cease-fire negotiations at Geneva were not successful within the next fortnight. He announced that he would ask Parliament to approve the sending of conscripts to Indo-China if the peace talks failed. At the same time he emphasised .iat he was hopeful of succeeding. “Reasons for expecting a favourable and honourable result are not lacking today," he said. He stood by his original promise to resign if he failed to get peace within a month expiring on July 20 but Mr Mendes-France said he was prepared for his “sacred duty” if he met failure at Geneva. That duty was to “watch over the destiny of those who would be called on tomorrow to continue the battle," and-to make sure that France was not weakened by the months of striving for peace. To that end he promised to make his last act the submission of a Bill authorising conscripts to be sent to Indo-China for his resignation might be followed by a “prolonged ministerial crisis,” and it • was in the national interests to have Parliamentary approval of such a Bill beforehand. Mr Mendes-France said he would leave for Geneva soon to head the French delegation at the conference on Indo-China.

Troops from .Europe He announced that General Gruenther, the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, had agreed to his request for permission to send French troops overseas from Europe. “In other words, everything is ready to reinforce our expeditionary corps should the present negotiations break down,” said Mr Mendes-France. Mr Mendes-France said that the shortening of the French lines in the northern Indo-China delta was based on purely military considerations, and was decided on nearly two months ago (that was to say by the preceding Government, and as a result of the fall of Dien Bien Phu). He repeated that his Government would never accept a capitulation. Effect of Agreement

“If the cease fire we hope for is negotiated this agreement will mean that the presence of France will be maintained in the Far East so that she can there pursue her civilising and pacific mission. This is why nobody must interpret my declaration this afternoon as a sign of alarm,” said Mr Mendes-France. - “All I have done today is to explain after close study of the situation the measures that 1 consider necessary to take should the negotiations meet with I Two e months ago about 80,000 Frenchmen were called up four to five months ahead of their time in anticipation of the possible need to send conscripts to Indo-China. The number of French Union troops in Indo-China today is 251,000 with 310,000 Vietnamese in their own national army.