France Perturbed

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 332, 18 April 1928, Page 9

France Perturbed

OUTLAWING WAR : U.S. PROPOSALS

No Provision for Dominions

United P.A.—By Telegraph Copyright) (Australian P.A.—United Service)

Reed. 12.30 p.m. LONDON. Tuesday. ACCORDING to the ''Morning Post," M. Briand is reported to have requested Britain, Italy and Germany not to forward their views on the American Draft Treaty outlawing war until France has prepared counter-proposals.

“ r JTHIS is an unusual procedure,” says the paper. “But M. Briand originated the plan to outlaw war, though he only suggested a Franeo-American pact. The gested a Franco-Ameriean pact. The U. S.A. Secretary of State, Mr. F. B. Kellogg, has now turned M. Briand’s gesture into a far-reaching proposal, aualagous in simplicity to Litviuoff’s, but the United States draft treaty makes no provision whatever for action in the event of the contract being broken. “This is specially important, to the British Empire. The Dominions may

not associate themselves with the treaties undertaken by Great Britain, but most treaties in some form or another are defensive alliances. The American proposals in this respect are negative and passive. "The Dominions are to all intents and purposes unarmed. What would happen if after the signing of such a i pact, Japan and say Australia went ]to war, or Canada and America. Would Great Britain, by her solemn undertaking, be asked to stand aside, or does the infringement by one of ; the contracting parties nullify the j pact? If so it is useless.”