UTTER FALSEHOODS

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 127, 29 April 1940, Page 7

UTTER FALSEHOODS

RIBBENTROP’S FANTASY. IMPUTING GUILT. TO INNOCENT NEUTRAL. (United Press Association—By ElectricTelegraph—Copyright.) (British Official Wireless.) Received April 29, 9.55 a.m. RUGBY, April 28. The Sunday Press reaction to Herr von llibbentrop’s speech is one of amazement at the extent and degree to which he not only departs from the truth, but with complete abandonment recites utter falsehoods in his account of the events leading - to the German invasion of Norway. The Sunday Times writes: “The neutral world will approach with natural scepticism Herr von Bibbentrop’s fantastic attempts to demonstrate that Germany invaded Norway only in order to forestall a previously prepared invasion by Britain. He says that on April 8, when Britain announced the mining of certain Norwegian waters, ‘British forces were already being transported through the North Sea.’ The question naturally presents itself, why then did they not get to Norway with or before the Germans? The answer is that ‘in the meantime part of the British troop transports were attacked and destroyed by the German air force.’ “The fact is, as announced last week by the British authorities, that irom first to last not a single British transport has been successfully attacked. Herr von Bibbentrop has invented the destruction of non-existent transports because in no other way could he explain their non-existence. Following the invasion of Denmark and Norway on April 9 by the German forces, the Allies prepared a counter-stroke, but it- was nearly a week before they could begin landing men in Norway. They were only able to do so then because early in March they bad collected an expeditionary force for Finland. SHABBY TRADITION. “Following one of the shabbiest German traditions, Herr von itibbentrop tries to impute giult to bis victim, Norway, on the strength ot alleged captured, documents. Tnis, it will be remembered, was exactly what Germany tried to do against Belgium in the last war. Nobody but her own credulous people and partisans was convinced tlien, or will be now. “In both cases the innocent country lias been scrupulously neutral. In both cases Germany lias profited by its brutality to overrun and snatch, and in both she has had .the incredible meanness to bring a lying charge against her victims.” 11l this connection the Swedish radio announced on Sunday morning that the Norwegian News Agency bad published a protest against, this allegation of von llibbentrop—that Britain had negotiated with Norway for the acquisition of military bases in Norway. Since the outbreak of the war, it is asserted, Norway has made every civ deavour to observe strict neutrality, and when Germany offered to help Norway against alleged aggression from Britain the King and bis Government and people refused, as acceptance would have been inconsistent with Norway’s neutrality. Norway’s protest states that, therefore, she is not surprised that Germany should now try to find ail excuse for her own aggression. NAZI INCONSISTENCY.

British observers watch with interest tile coutraditions in which Nazi propaganda has become involved in its laboured efforts to justify the German attack upon Norway. One example of many is the affirmation in the preface to the bogus documents published by Herr von Ribbentrop on (Saturday “that the Norwegian Government was ready from the beginning not only readily to accept any violation of its neutrality bv England, but also to join hands with England.” if this were true—and of course it has no vestige of truth—how misinformed the Nazi Government must have been about the government the country of which, in their first explanations of their sudden treacherous (aggression, they represented they were taking “under Germany’s protection to prevent a hostile attack.” The Nazi Government was not misinformed. The first explanations and the new explanations of the Nazi invasion of a neutral neighbour are, in the British view, alike merely calculated compositions of allegation and inference invented to serve the purpose of the hour. It scorns that Nazi propaganda. lost in admiration of its own versatility, .has now entirely forgotten the importance of consistency.