Pacific Naval Power

Manawatu Times, Volume 64, Issue 305, 27 December 1939, Page 7

Pacific Naval Power

AMERICA v. JAPAN The annual report of Mr. Edison, the United States. Secretary for the Navy, which was published recently, is of particular interest (says the military correspondent of the Sydney Morning Herald), because it reflects the naval changes since February 13, 1938, when Japan refused to afford any further information with regard to her building programmes. Its principal significance lies in the fact that it demonstrates the satisfaction of the United States naval authorities with tho present programme of construction; and this is the first occasion on which the United States has been able to give its views about the “Sixyear Programme" which the Japanese adopted on March 6 of this year. The existing American programme rose out of President Roosevelt’s famous Naval Message to Congress on January 28, 1938, when he asked approval for a programme costing 800,000,000 dollars (£160,000,000 sterling at par) and allowing a 20 per cent, increase in naval tonnage over the previous treaty limits. By the time the Bill passed both Houses, on March 30, the estimated cost had risen to more than 1,113,000,000 dollars; and no sooner had the members voted for it than the Navy Department requested an increase of 1,300,000,000 dollars (£260,000,000 sterling). This was because of the enormous cost of the three “super-battleships" and the two aircraft-carriers. On May 18, 1939, the building programme for the year 193940 was sanctioned. It included two battleships, two, light cruisers, eight destroyers and 11 smaller vessels. The Japanese, incensed by this new programme, retorted by a retaliatory “Six-year Plan," costing 1,205,000,000 yen (about £150,000,000 at par). In announcing this plan, Admiral Yonai stated that the Japanese navy had to equal tho strongest sea force in the world, and that Japan had to build new ships in the light of the Yinson programme and the British four-year plan. It is under this plan that Japan is building the three 40,000-ton battleships and the two aircraft-carriers to which Mr. Edison referred in his report. Despite this New Japanese activity, the United States naval authorities still think that the existing building programme is adequate to maintain peace in the Pacific, although various announcements made since the outbreak of the European war made it clear that the actual building under the American programme will be far more rapid than was anticipated a few months ago.