The Dominion WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1943. A SURVEY OF PACIFIC PROBLEMS

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 21, 20 October 1943, Page 4

The Dominion WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1943. A SURVEY OF PACIFIC PROBLEMS

In the course of an interesting statement, published in yesterday's news columns, of the work undertaken by the British military mission which is now in this country, Major-General Lethbridge (leader of the party) linked this work with a recent undertaking voiced by Britain’s 'Prime Minister. “It is,” he is reported to have said, “an implementation of Mr. Churchill’s declaration that as soon as the war in Europe is brought to a successful conclusion, every man, warship, plane and tank would be transferred to the. Pacific for the successful conclusion of the war against Japan. I his was cettainly the spirit, if not the actual words, of Mr. Churchill’s declaration, and the presence of the British army, naval and air representatives (who are accompanied by a similar party representing the United States) serves to show that the British Government is losing no time in arranging for a survey of tactical and supply problems peculiar to this theatre of the world conflict. The visit of the Mission is one of the clearest indications yet given of confidence in high places that the collapse of Germany is likelv to be achieved within a certain appreciable time. According to MajorGeneral Lethbridge, this was seen in Britain in May—some time before the beginning of the great Mediterranean offensive, which brought about the invasion and downfall of Italy, and thus enabled the Allies to breach the enemy’s European fortress. In the last four or five months the war situation in Europe has so much improved that earlier opinion may well have crystallized into certainty. This being the case, the Mission is engaged in something much more definite than a mere investigation of future possibilities. It may be regarded as the advance party, in the South Pacific area, of the tremendous military machine of the Allies, which, in time to come, will be employed to thrust the Japanese out of Burma, China, Malaya and the East Indies; to restore Thailand and the Philippines; and finally to direct against Japan an offensive which will compel her unconditional surrender. An outline was given by Major-General Lethbridge of the exceptionally detailed and comprehensive nature of the Mission’s task, and this'should help the public to understand that the eventual transfer of huge land, sea and air forces from hemisphere to hemisphere, and from temperate to tropic climates, will be one requiring painstaking preparation on an immense scale. It will necessitate the re-training and re-equipment of troops; and, in the air as well as on land, considerable changes in the technique of warfare as now applied in To use an engineering term, the British war factory will require to be partially re-tooled for a new productive job. These facts should not be overlooked or forgotten in this Dominion. They help to show what will be involved in Britain’s sturdy undertaking to concentrate on the Pacific after the struggle with Germany is over and won. Our resolution to co-operate, now and in the future, to the fullest of our national capacity should, and must, be strengthened by this clear knowledge that the Mother Country, notwithstanding her immense preoccupations elsewhere, is already preparing for the great Pacific task.