LUGANO CONVERSATIONS

Evening Star, Issue 20054, 20 December 1928, Page 9

LUGANO CONVERSATIONS

REPARATIONS AND EVACUATION

STATEMENT BY SIR AUSTEN CHAMBER* LAIN (British Official Wireless.) Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright. IVUGBY, December 19. (.Deceived December 20, at noon.) . Asked in tho House of Commons for a statement about his conversations at Lugano, especially with regard to reparations and tho evacuation of the Rhineland, Sir Austen Chamberlain said lie had little to add to the communique issued at Lugano by M. Briand, Dr Stresemann, and himself. This was the iy-st occasion on which they had met since March last, and it afforded them an opportunity for the removal of some misconceptions anil for a very friendly interchange of views, such as had become customary whenever they met. No new decisions were cither taken or sought. The reparations problem was being dealt with through tho ordinary channels, and they did not attempt to duplicate iho negotiations on the subject, which centred in Paris. They agreed that the first tiling to do was to secure the appointment of a committee of experts, ami they hoped that the_ committee might get to work early in the new year. Their discussion of other problems, which were dealt with in a resolution como to by the Powers at Geneva last September, was purely exploratory and declaratory in character, but he derived from it tho impression that the circumstances were favourable to a solution. In tho public interest ho declined to say more at present.