LEAGUE ASSEMBLY

Hokitika Guardian, 4 September 1929, Page 5

LEAGUE ASSEMBLY

BRITISH PRIME MINISTER.

ADDRESS AT OPENING

(British Official Wireless.)

(Received this day at 11.25. a.m.) RUGBY, September 3.

Air Ramsay MacDonald (British Prime Minister) addressed the Assembly of the League of Nations this afternoon.

He said during the last five years many changes had taken place, nearly all of which had been for the advancement of peace and the strengthening cf the League’s authority. Nothing gives me greater pleasure, lie declared, than the benches which were empty in 1924, have been filled for and that Germany is present to take part in our delegations. What they had now to do after these changes was to proceed with the work of developing the , authority of the League and laying wider and more securely than ever the foundations of international peace. !

As they had realised, five years ago, the problem of the League was a problem of security. Since 1924 they had started on another road. A pact of peace had been signed at Paris and that pact was now their starting point. The Assembly of the League was going to butt that pact. One of the most important contributions in this direction was the work of the conference just concluded at The Hague. The agreement arrived at would be signed, he believed, in a few weeks. ' It was, however, a proud moment for all of them to know that next week the first of the battalions would march out of the occupied area of Germany facing homewards, never to return again.

It was a hopeful and encouraging thing that they were now met as members of the League in the spirit of the League, with unruffled friendship, cooperating in the work of peace. The British Government, as he • was sure .were all the others, was desirous that the pact of peace signed in Paris should not only be a declaration on paper, but should be translated into the constitution and institutions that would work for the peace of the world. Continuing, Air MacDonald said the League must set itself to solve the problem of disarmament. He urged the Preparatory Commission of the League not to face the problem in the mentality of the possibility of war, but on the assumption that the risk of war is far less than the likelihood of peace being permanently observed. .

They had to ask their military advis r ers to believe that there was as much security in an agreement as in a regiment of soldiers or a battleship. The British Government's special contribution towards disarmament must be in the field of naval disarmament. In the fitst case, some agreement such as the one between Great Britain and the United States, which must and could not he regarded ns directed against any other nation, but rather as a helpful lead to the rest of the world. VVhat they wanted was such an agreement, and having been made, could be a preliminary to the calling of the five powers to a naval conference, the other Powers being as free to put in their proposals and Britain as free to negotiate with them as though no conversations had taken place between America and Britain.

These negotiations were not yet completed, but an agreement had gonevery far. He did not know what the final form of the agreement would take, but be thought they might be of twenty points of agreement, a very comprehensive document, for they were not out for small things but to establish peace. If the document ultimately ran to twenty points it could be said that only about three wore outstanding at the present moment. ITc had hoped it might have been possible to make a definite announcement there, (but liei was not at all sure the announcement might not be made before the present Assembly came to an end. The British Government, however, had been considering what it could do at the present Assembly to buttress the foundation of the pact of peace.

As a contribution to this they would seek to revise sections 13 and 15 of the Covenant of the League and bring them right up fo date and in line with the Kellogg Pact.

Jt was desired to close the gap left by these sections in the event of conciliation failing, and thus to harmonise the obligations of members of the League with the obligations under the Pact. 1

Proceeding, Mr MacDonald said lie was in a position to announce that the British Government had decided to sign the optional clause and the form of. its declaration was now being prepared. Tt would be completed and put in during the present assembly. Further, His Majesty's Governments : n other parts ol the British Commonwealth, who were members Ur the League bad been consulted, qnd be believed each of them would instruct its delegate' to sign the cause during this Assembly, but in accordance with their rights and their positions at Geneva thev would make their own statements on the subject. His own hope was that this meeting of the Assembly might be known as the Optional Clause Assembly.

REFERENCES TO EGYPT AND PALESTINE. (Received this rlav at 11 25. a.m.) RUGBY, September 4. Mr Ramsay MacDonald refeuing to the agreement offered by Britain to Egypt, said the effect of it would be that Egypt would be in a position to apply for membership ol the League.