MUSSOLINI’S NAVY

Hokitika Guardian, 17 December 1929, Page 2

MUSSOLINI’S NAVY

HE STATES ITALY’S CASE. [.United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph.—Copyright. ] LONDON, December 15. In view of the general idea that the chief problem of the Naval Conference next month will be that of overcoming the Italian and French difficulties, which already have been complicated by Italy’s decision to support the abolition of the submarines special interest . attached to Signor Mussolini’s latest article, entitled “Italy ancjl the Sea.” 11 Duce classes Italy and France as “small sea Powers,” whose needs, he says, are different to those of other Powers. Italy will go to the Naval Conference ready to accept in principle the lowest figures, providing that they are equal to those of any other ContiIV: nla I Power.

Signor Mussolini says: “Few countries are so weeded to the sea as Italy, which is virtually the drawbridge of Europe on the African side. One fourth of her population lives on the sea coast. To her the sea is a stern necessity. Not only is the navy with Italy a question of defence, but it is one of keeping open the lanes of her food supplies, and of establishing contact with her colonies. She needs a navy that is entirely different from that of Britain and of the United States, so that a mere reduction of class, for class does not settle Italy’s maritime needs.”

He continues:—“lt is our imperative duty to' protect our vigorous nation. We are disseminated to the.four corners of the world. It suits us to have as. many fighting units at sea as possible, instead of capital ships, of which we have built none since the year 1912. The luxury in which these capital ships have to live is too much for us to bear. The fact that we have not built any such ships for seventeen years past is a noteworthy protest against their great expense of construction and maintenance. To give a lesser Power a certain limited tonnage of capital ships is scarcely of any use. Therefore, why should the available tonnage be allotted on the basis of capital ships? Italy is interested, in only three out the. five categories—namely, cruisers, destroyers and submarines. We need ships of medium tonnage. Therefore the fixing of the limit should be on the general, or global tonnage, so that we can build the type that is fitted for our peculiar problems It should be sufficiently elastic to permit us to choose our type. Our only outlet to the world is through Gibraltar, which opens the Atlantic Ocean for us, this outlet being indispensable to Italy for our supplies of raw mateerial, and also because ten million Italians live abroad. A small force can, block the nine miles of strait, and, on that day, the very existence of Italy’s forty-two million people will be at stake. These considerations create the necessity for her possessing a navy such as will assure her of the indispensable minimum of free navigation of the seas.”