STRAIN ON RESOURCES

Chronicle (Levin), 8 January 1947, Page 2

STRAIN ON RESOURCES

(Special Correspondent.) . .

British liiitary Forces Revkwed

^ LONBON, Jan. 6. Tlie British Oabinet is expected to review in *the near £ uture the importaht subject of her miiitary commitments. In a review of international aft'airs, tlie.Times recentiy remai'ked that these commitments which Britain is shouldering in Germany, India, Indonesia, Baiestine, and Greece impose a strain oh her resources in manpower, material and foreign exchange wliich is increasingly diliicult to reconcile with the iinperative requiremeiits of recovery and reconstruction. Remarking that, while Cabinet is known to be anxious to reduce tliem at an early dutc, the Tiines added that the trend of events appeared to poiut to the 'need for a •reinforcement rather than a retrenchment. If the strain, it said, is not to become intolerable aud if the resources are not to be overtaken by the demand' npoii them, a f resh examination of the policy, in, at any rate, some of these regions will aimost certainly be called for. These commitments, together. with the subject of Imperial defence as a vvhole, - will be the cliief concern of Mr A. V. Alexander, the new Minister of Defence, who in the approaching months vv'iil be busilv engaged in forming liis new department Qn the lines set out in the "White Paper of last October. It is reasonable to suppose that once his department is in full working order there may be renewed constiltatious with the Dominions 011 Imperial defence. During the discussions of the Commonwealth Prime Ministers last year in London it was tacitiy agreed that the Dominions sliotild bear a greater sliare of the cost, But thusfar the subject has not been further pursued, though there have been .certain developments; for instance, Ihe establishment of the rocket range in Aus-" tralia. Interest lias been added to the wholo question ot Britain 's commitments and her defence policy by the recent re1 ports tliat she and America are rapid ! ly completiiig plans fo'r laiui, sea and j air cooperatiou. This cooperation is | designeU, it is stated, agamst the pos aibility of the two countries being involved in another war, in which event it would enable the forces of botti

uations, trained and equipped under a standardised system, to move into actiou under oue supreme commander.- ' ORicial Reticence Being Maintained Though oihcial reticence is at prei,ent being maintained on thia report, it would appear there is much ground for believing that its general trend, particularly in view of the excliange of Air Poree otheers whieh it announced, vvill take plaee between tlie two countries. Puftheriuore, Mr. Attlee in the House of Gommons debate on November 13 agreed that there should be coilaboration with the Amcrican General Staff since the two countries vvere occupying Europe joiiitiy. Tlie cust of Lritain's Armed Forces ; tliroughout the w orld is not light and for tlie current year it is considerably liigher than betore tlie war. The totuJ eslimutes ior Ihe curre/uL year euding : April and including the three Serv ices land the Miuistrv oi Buppiy are £I,SSU, 1 5UU,U0U, compared with £37U,UUU,UUU in 1933-39. ' Auy major reductio.n in this iond ai'ter dcmobibsatiou is compieted depeuds either upon an iinprovement in general world conditions, the probu ijility of the Dominions Laking an in- : creased shai'e, or upon disarmament, the ialter subject being oue of tliose recentiy discussed by Euited Nations. Thougli Britain would weleome disarmament 011 moral and economical grounds Ihere seems to be a general feeling that any uniiateral action by her at the momeut would, to say the ieast, be jiremature. - Britain s preseiit aililude 011 the subject is indicated by Ihe decision to retaiu miiitary conscriplion in peacetime for the iirst time in lier history. Gonscription is by 110 means 1 p.opular, but the country has not forgottcn the lioliow days of Mr. Ramsay MacDonald and the tinal rcarmament rush ending in a race for neutrality, with Britain iightiug for a year by herself. It is also borue in mind that the peace freaties with Germany and Japan have not yet been discussed, and that 110 system of miiitary security lias been establislied under LTnited Nations, l while the whole subject of atomic energy remains a mass of queries. . Aniong other things Britain has yet to make up her mind as to whether the control of the kleditorraiiean* is still abfc'olutely uecessary Lo Imperial security, aml she also lias lo take into laccount tlie inlentions of India and. j the gradual forming of what is called : the New Asia. This New Asia is seen to be arisiug direetly out of the war' and embf-aees, in addition to Egypt and India, "also Trans-Jordan, Iraq, S.yria, Burma, the Dutch East Indies, Korea, and Indo-Ghina, all the countries claiming freedom from dependence on tlie West and whose claims make fresli impressions On tlie whole concejption of Imperial defence.