MEDITERRANEAN RUMOURS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 136, 25 June 1937, Page 4

MEDITERRANEAN RUMOURS

The later cable messages that came through yesterday showed both the German Eoreign Minister, Baron von Neurath, and the German Ambassador in London, Herr von Ribbentropp, as discussing with Great Britain the situation arising out of the alleged torpedoing of the German warship Leipzig in such a conciliatory way as almost to suggest that any crisis that might have threatened had been safely passed. However, overnight cables indicate that the very moderation. of the new note thus struck has, in some quarters at any rate, given rise to suspicions as to its sincerity. These doubts have^naturally enough, been considerably aggravated by the fact that although Germany has withdrawn from participation in the naval patrol of the Spanish coasts, which alone afforded justification for her sending warships into the Mediterranean, she still keeps those warships there, where they are, of course, in fairly close contact with the Italian naval forces, with which they could readily co-operate. Beyond this there are even rumours of further German warships being on their way to the Mediterranean and of movements round about Gibraltar, where the neighbouring country is in the hands of the Spanish insurgents, that give rise to still further misgivings. As to how far the inferences thus drawn are of mere journalistic origin or as to how far they may be shared officially it is at, present impossible to say. For authentic information on that point we shall have to await some further pronouncement, possibly during the day, from the British Foreign Secretary, Mr. Anthony Eden, who will probably feel that displomatic courtesies require that at least he should proceed on the footing of, ostensibly at any rate, accepting Germany's friendly protestations as being genuine. In any event, it is easy to see that the situation is one of considerable delicacy and will need careful handling to avert possible malign international complications. In this connection it may not be an altogether false conclusion to draw* that a good deal more is to be feared from influences exercised by Signor Mussolini than from any spontaneous action on the part of Herr Hitler. It is Italy, not Germany, that is seeking to establish domination over the waters of the Mediterranean, and it may well be doubted whether Herr Hitler would sacrifice favourable prospects of establishing friendly relations with Great Britain, in order to make Germany something of a catspaw to help Signor Mussolini in pulling his Mediterranean chestnuts out of the fire. From all accounts it is not to be taken that the ItaloGerman accord is of the most cordial nature or that either dictator has not grave suspicions as to the ulterior motivep that are really actuating the other, or as to their respective ambitions clashing in the end. The real difficulty that just now stands in the way of effective negotiations for restoring peace to Europe lies in the fact that the whole atmosphere is permeated with distrust and suspicion such as make frank discussions almost impossible. This hangs not only over the chancelleries of the various nations but also over their peoples. Nor is it well for us to cherish the delusion that this feeling does not extend to Great Britain and her Empire. It is not in Berlin and Rome alone that doubts are entertained and expressed as to the genuineness of British motives, while propagandists from both those centres are continually busy fostering and promoting this feeling. Even from the United States we have not altogether infrequent intimation of doubts as to the purity and disinteresfredness of British movements.