HENDERSON’S REPORT

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 3, Issue 659, 11 October 1933, Page 5

HENDERSON’S REPORT

(Britisli Official Wireless.)

A GENERAL DESIRE FOR AN EARLY DECISION PROBLEMS CLASSIFIED

Rugby, Oct. 9. The Bureau of the Disarmament Conference met at Geneva. The conference on adjourning last July, instructed the President (Mr. A. Henderson) to consult the Governments in the leading European capitals. He stated to-day that he had reached the conclusion that there was a general desire that a decision should be taken without delay, and on the second reading of the British Draft Convention so that the greatest measure of agreement might be reached' on the question of reducing and limiting armaments.

The situation became sufficiently clarified to divide the outstanding difficulties in the way of a general agreement into two categories — one including questions relatively easy to settle,1cind the other those less easy of adjustment. In the former category he placed: — (1) Non-recourse to forceon a universal basis; (2) the definition of aggressor; (3) control and supervision; (4) standardisation of European armies; (5) control of publicity on the subjeet of budgets; (6) bombing from the air; (7) setting up a permanent disarmament commission; and (8) naval questions. Difficult Tasks The list of the more difficult problems included — (1) duration of the first stage defined in the convention; (2) size of tanks and artillery; (3) reduction of land and war material, either by destruction or otherwise; (4) private manufacture of and trading in anns; (5) military and naval aviation; (6) penalties for violation of tbe convention. As regarded the duration of the convention, Mr. Henderson said that some countries had expressed preference for a five years' convention, whilst others suggested a convention for eight years, split into two periods of four years, the first of which might for the sake of convenience be called a period of probation or adaptation. A permanent disarmament commission svould be charged with the responsibility of deciding whether the machinery of control and supervision had been effective during the first probationary period. Mr. Henderson urged it was not necessary that the convention should be ratified before the commission met. The British Draft The German delegate Herr Nadolny, expressed the hope that the conference w*ould resume the second reading of the British Draft Convention, and the British delegate (Captain R. A. Eden), undertoolc to prepare drafts on the points of the proposed convention on which the delegates already had agreed. The General Commission of the Conference will meet on Monday next and a further. meeting of the Bureau will he held on Saturday.