BRITAIN'S WAR AIMS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 76, 22 December 1917, Page 9

BRITAIN'S WAR AIMS

MR. BALFOUR REPLIES TO

CRITICISM

RUSSIA AND THE BALKANS

NO OBSCURITY IN OUR

ATTITUDE

London, December 20. Replying, in tho course of the debata in the House of Commons on Britain's war aims, to Mr. A. A. Ponsonby's earlier remarks, Mr.. A.. J. Balfour, Foreign Minister, said it would be the grossest travesty of facts, and would also be assisting the enemy's propaganda, to say that our aims were Imperialistic, or that Britain for selfish objects was prolonging a war which the Central Powers desired to end upon fair terms. There was no foundation for the suggestion that but for the blundering of our Foreign Office and War Cabinet Russia would still be fighting whole-heartedly Mr. Ponson.bv was entirely wrong- in saying that Britnin's attitude towards the Russian revolution was so chilling as to bo likelv to impair the whol" future of Anglo-Russian relations. Tho Government welcomed the end of autocrac.y in Russia with warmth and enthusiasm find a vividness of hope for which unfortunatelv up to the nreseiit there v. as little justification. If Britain's good wishes, warm hopes, and sanguine expectation could make the revolution successful, it ought, to be the greatest success possible. When dealing with a world-wide war, all sorts of difficulties and side issues must. necesarily arise, but the. Government had been accused of tarnishing the country's honour, of acting a hypocritical part,_ of prolonging tho war, and of boasting of a disinterestedness which was decreasing among British people. The notion that any arrangement was made about Constantinople for tho furtherance of any Imperialistic idea was absurd. Tho arrangements' concerning Persia were carried through by Sir H. Campbell-Bannerman witli Russia in 190", and were'then'regarded as a preat triumph of international amity. The formation of an independent Poland undor the Russian Empire was the ex-Tsar' solution nf _ a question cf domestic police. Britain might have wish™! the ex-Tsar's declaration to take a different form, hut the declaration was explicit.' The Foreign Office bad never heard of the pronosal to create' a. new buffer State oil the'left bank of the' Rhine suggested in the Pe.trograd disclosures, and Mr. Balfour did not believe that such a scheme reoresented the French policy. There had been no ohscuritv in our statement of war aims. We had stated them truVv. The obscurity was with the Central Powers, who did not state their aims at, all. _ Lord H. Cavendish'Bentiriek said it was ridiculous to hope for a League of Nations while Germany was. 'holding parts of France. Belgium, Serbia, and Rumania. If the enemy, evacuated those countries we might begin:to talk of peace. The Government wished to assist the armies to pull the nation together. It could do more than that'hy renouncing the idea of an economic boveott of Germany.

Mr. H. Pago Croft' said that Oermany should know . that for every month this ghastly and wicked war contiimp'l her materials would he excluded for a. y»ar . from British ports.—Aus.-N.Z. Cable Assn.