End In Sight

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 945, 11 April 1930, Page 9

End In Sight

THREE NAVAL POWERS AGREE Cut in Fleet Programmes FRANCE AND ITALY OUT OF TREATY A THREE-POWER agreement has been reached at the London Naval Conference. Great Britain, the United States and Japan have reconciled their views on fleet programmes and after a treaty embodying’ these questions has been signed the conference will probably adjourn. France and Italy remain irreconcilable.

British Official Wireless Reed. Noon. RUGBY, Thursday. The Prime Minister, Mr. Ramsay MacDonald, in the House of Commons, stated: —“I am happy to announce that this morning an agreement was finally reached between the United St.ates, Japan and Great Britain on naval programmes, including all categories of ships. The terms of the agreement are now being drafted. They will follow very closely the figures announced last September and October during negotiations with the United States, and they show substantial reductions. “A White Paper will be prepared from time to time. Since the opening of the conference the various points of disagreement which have held up progress toward disarmament have been settled, and these, it is hoped, brought together in one instrument, will be signed by the five Powers. “The differences in the naval requirements of France and Italy have not so far been resolved. At a meeting early this evening between the French, Italian and United Kindgom delegations it was decided that, as such a substantial agreement had been reached, it was both unnecessary and undesirable to keep the full body of delegates sitting in London for the settlement of difficulties which primarily concerned those three delegations, and so we shall propose that at the plenary session to be held early next week, the agreement now reached shall be signed, and the conference adjourned on the undertaking that France, Italy and Britain continue the efforts to reach an agreement in conjunction with that between America, Japan and Britain.” TECHNICAL AGREEMENTS An earlier message said: Efforts to secure a full five-Power agreement have not been abandoned. On a number of technical matters the five Powers are in agreement, and it is understood the question of whether these should be embodied in the treaty form, to be signed by all Powers represented at the Conference, is being discussed. Newspapers state that the broad outlines of the form which such an agreement might take were considered today at the headquarters of the French delegation when Mr. H, L. Stimson (U.S.A.), accompanied by his colleague Mr. Dwight Morrow met M. Briand. The proposal, which is of course purely tentative and is one of several which are under consideration unofficially, is said to comprise three parts, of which part,' one and part two might be signed by all five Powers and part three by Britain, the United States and Japan. It is suggested part one should preserve the agreement reached between the delegations on the subject of what Is called the naval holiday in capital ships and large aircraft carriers, and the speeding up of scrapping should embody the table which represents the agreed com promise between the category and global methods of limiting naval tonnage, and should apply to the definitions of exempt and special ships which lie outside these categories. Part two it is stated, relates to

methods for humanising submarine warfare, upon which an agreement was reached in committee among the representatives of the five Powers this week. Within this framework it is suggested that a three-power agreement might be embodied, and this would be dealt with in part three of the proposed draft. FINAL SESSION FOF.ECAST Efforts to secure a more far reaching agreement as the outcome of the conference, however, was continued throughout the day and until late this evening. The French and United Kingdom delegations met before noon. Shortly after noon Mr. Ramsay MacDonald and Mr. Arthur Henderson were in conversation with the Italian Ambassador and Signor Rossi. The British Empire delegation had a meeting later, and at 6.30 tonight M. Briand visited Mr. MacDonald at his Downing Street residence to review once more the position of the Conference. An official communique says: “The French, Italian and United Kingdom delegations met at No. 10 Downing Street this evening, and the present state of negotiations was considered with a view to a report to the heads of delegations on Friday morning.” The heads of delegations will tomorrow proceed with drafting a treaty which will emerge from the Conference as indicated. This will probably comprise certain articles to be signed by three Powers only, leaving certain questions for later settlement. What will probably be the final plenary meeting apart from that for signing the treaty, will he held on Monday or Tuesday. FIVE-POWER HOPE DEAD A Press Association message says the reason for the lack of progress with the security negotiations at the Naval Conference yesterday was that Signor Grandi (Italy) was suffering from a cold. This is regarded by many as a diplomatic indisposition. The British, American and Italian delegations now admit that little hope remains of a five Powers pact. One observer describes it as a “corpse” though the announcement of its death is still withheld. The last differences in the way of a complete three Powers agreement have disappeared. Britain and America have agreed to Japan’s request to accelerate the building of cruisers and destroyers in order to keep the dockyards in Japan employed. Japan was undertaking not to accelerate her submarine programme.