NAVAL CONFERENCE

Hokitika Guardian, 11 April 1930, Page 5

NAVAL CONFERENCE

NAVAL AGREEMENT.

FRANCE AND ITALY OUT OF IT

[United Press Association —By Electric

Teleg rap h —Copyright. J

LONDON, April 10. The English, American, and -Japanese delegations now admit that little Impo remains of a l'ive-Powor Naval Pact.

One observer to-day described the Five-Power Pact as “a corpse,” though, lie said, the announcement of its death is still withheld. The last differences in the way of a complete Three-Power agreement disappeared to-day, England and America agreeing to Japan’s request to accelerate her cruiser and destroyer building in order to keep her dockyards employed. Japan js undertaking not to accelerate her .submhrine programme.

Signor Grainli (Italian delegate) is reported to he ill. His cold, however, i,i by many regarded as a diplomatic indisposition although it is given as the reason for the non-progress of the security negotiations to-day.

NAVY AND ARMY

DEBATE IN THE LORDS,

RUGBY, April 9

Lord Trenchard, former Marshall of the Air Force, in his maiden speech in the House of Lords, called attention to the importance of an adequate, efficient air force for the British Empire. He referred to a statement recently made by tthe Under Secretary of the Air Force that to-day France had a first line strength of 1309 aeroplane, Italy 1,100; America, 900, and Great Britain 770. That meant Britain was fourth among the Powers in air strength. He said this fact required very earnest consideration. We were to-day as dependent for the security of the Empire upon air power as upon the Navy.

Lord Thompson said the elements in air power were an air force of sufficient strength to carry out the policy of the country: air communication sufficiently developed; an air transport system nourished and fed bv an edequate aircraft industry, and lastly a highly, developed system HP aeronautical research. No means of purely passive defence had been devised for dealing with attacks from the air. He assured Lord Trenchard the Government were giving the most on refill a+t.ention to the subject. The Prime Minister was taking an active port as head of the Committee of Imperial Defence.

Turning to the question of air disarmament, Lord Thompson said that we never claimed a one-power standard in the air. Air disarmament was one of the biggest problems that lay ahead. If air development went on there was no town in this country which would be, safe from bombing His own view was that no country could possess air power, tliat was not a progressive -and highly developed country. The countries which could possess air power were very few, and they fortunately were democratically governed. Without their political cooperation and agreement there . was however, no prospect of disarmament in a strict sense in the air.

The ensuing date w r as remarkeble for the arguments that were brought against the Air Force by Lord Beatty for the navy, and Lord Cavan for the army.

Lord Beatty declared the navy would willingly forego its disagreeable work in the Persian Gulf and the Bed Sea in favour of any better agency, hut he asked how aeroplanes could tell nationality or stop the smuggling of arms. It was necessary for a sloop to draw alongside and examine papers. Moreover the weather nine months of the year precluded air boats. Finally, he asked how could an aeroplane discharge an important function of the Navy namely. showing the flag. f Lord Cavan said the question was essentially one for the Cabinet and Die Committee of Imperial Defence The Air Force was now an army, hut depended on the other services. He then proceeded to attack imliseriminatlv air warfare, where, he snkl, both innocent and guilty were alike pun-i'-hed. Why the matter was never op the agenda at the Geneva Conference wts to humanitarians an inconceivable thing.

AGREEMENT FINALLY REACHED

TERMS BEING DRAFTED

(Received this br »on 1 RUGBY, Amril 10.

The Prime Minister in the Commons stated :—“I am harpy to announce that this forenoon an agreement was finally reached between United States, Japan and Great Britain on the naval programme including all categories of ships. Tim terms of agreement are now being drafted. They will follow very closely tlm figures announced last September and October during negotiations with United States and tliev show substantial reductions. A White Paper will be prepared from time to time. ’ Since the opening of the Conference various points of disagreement which have held nip progress towards disarmament have been settled and these it is hope, 'brought together in one instrument, will he signed by the Five Powers. The differences in the naval requirements of France and Italy have hot so far boon resolved. At a meeting ea.rlv this evening, between French, Itnlian anfl United Kingdom delegations,

it was decided that as such a substantial had been conic to, it was both unnecessary and undesirable to keep the full body oi delegates sitting in London for tin settlement 'of the difficulties wh/iA; primarily concerned those three delegations, and so we shall propose that at the Plenary Session to he lick early next week, the agreement now come to shall be signed and the Conference adjourned, on the undertaking that France, Italy and Britain continue efforts to roach an agreement in conjunction with that between America, Japan and Britain, SITUATION ACTIVE. LONDON, April 11. “The situation is very active,” explained the British spokesman. Messrs Stimson and MacDonald met and later English, Americans and Japanese conferred and polished off the last outstanding points in the way of a clear conclusion of the Three-Power Treaty The spokesman said European activates showed a hone that some sort oh a Five-Power Pact was not abandoned.