ECONOMIC WAR

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 129, 1 May 1940, Page 7

ECONOMIC WAR

BRITISH PRESSURE. STOPPING LEAKAGES. EFFECTS REVIEWED. (United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph.—Copyright.) (British Ullicial Wireless.) Received May 1, 12.10 p.m. ; RUGBY, May 30. “Economic warfare is essentially ail offensive weapon and to be effective it. must be used with the same resolution and thoroughness as any other arm,” said the Minister of Economic Warfare (Mr R. A. Cross),.in a speech to the American Chamber of Commerce, which was specially broadcast to the United States. “By waging economic warfare to the utmost we believe we shall shorten the war by many months,” he said. “We certainly claim we have already made Germany feel its pressure but economic warfare does not produce quick results. “Germany has an immensely powerful economic machine which has been organised for years to meet the very struggle in .which she is now invoiced. The Germans are a redoubtable enemy and have shown their usual industry and skill in devising ways of evading the blockade. We are constantly at work to deleat this evasion.”' He admitted there were leaks and mentioned the Vladivostok route. Many consignments had reached Vladivostok by - curious and suspicious routes. He said the United States had been the source of much of the raw materials going there, “and we wonder sometimes now far it is generally realised in your country that important supplies of key war materials have reached Germany in this way. Mention of this dangerous route via Vladivostok shows that the problems with which wo have to deal in economic warfare arc world-wide.” IMPORTS FROM U.S.A. Referring to the necessity for Britain to cut down imports of good* not necessary lor war purposes iiom America ami other neutrals, Mr Gross said it was surprising that British purchases of American looilstuns hud been maintained at so high a level. In normal years before the war Britain bought some £2(J,OUU,000 worth of such goods annually, while the latest estimate of similar purchases during the first year of tiic war is about £ 10,000,000. Tins iact, Mr Cross said, was a demonstration of Britain's desire not to divert trade from its normal channels moie than was absolutely necessary. Thanks to the co-operation of American shipowners, the delays to ships at British contraband bases, about which there were earlier certain complaints, had now been greatly reduced. Of 10 American vessels which had passed inwards through Gibraltar since March 00 eight were cleared on the day they arrived and two were cleared next day. NAVICERT SYSTEM. The navicert system had also been working well. Over 4800 applications for navicerts had been dealt with since December 1 and nearly 000 fu'ly navieerted ships which need not enter control liases had been cleared at sea within the past few months. AERIAL TRAFFIC. Mr Cross said that he was not satisfied with the position of aerial traffic to and from Germany, especially over the routes leading from Spam and Portugal and connecting with Pan-Ameri-can trans-Atlantic routes to the United States. The possibilities of preventing contraband being thus imported into Germany were being examined, lie disclosed that parcels of food from overseas which had been intercepted and shown to he destined for Germany had already run into many thousands. Such parcels were seized and placed in prize. Since the German invasion of Denmark and Norway no shipping had been allowed to proceed to ports in Denmark or German-occupied Norway, said Mr Cross, in a reply to a question in the House of Commons. Cargoes on ships destined for Denmark had been seized as prize. The disposal of cargoes destined for Norway was being decided by the Norwegian shipping and trad" mission in London in consultation with the British Government. As far as possible licenses would he granted freely for the importation of goods from those parts of Norway not under enemy control . Mr Cross said war trade discussii ns with neutral States were constantly in progress.