PEACEFUL AIMS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 11 April 1938, Page 7

PEACEFUL AIMS

LORD HALIFAX ON DANGER OF BLOCS USE OF LEAGUE WITHIN LIMITS. ..CRITICISM OF LABOUR PARTYATTITUDE. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, April 9. In his speech at Bristol, the Foreign Secretary, Lord Halifax, criticised the Labour Party’s policy of attacking foreign governments. Even if justifiable from the limited view of home politics, it could do nothing but i incalculable harm abroad and obviously would make agreement between Britain and other countries more difficult, and to that extent increase the risk of war. Once the Opposition had made the position plain, only harm was done by hurling provocative language at those responsible for the government of other countries.

Proceeding, Lord Halifax said: “I have said that while men and women of all parties would agree with the main objective of our policy, which must be honourable peace, they might and do differ as to the method by which it can most surely be achieved.” He declared that in considering foreign policy they must be prepared to face facts. Hany people thought the League Assembly ought to be called together so that it might pass resolutions condemning things of which British opinion was held to disapprove, but he could not believe this would do any good to the League or to the world. The League had a long record of achievement in many fields to its credit, but it was also necessary to recognise that the League was not and never had been the universal body- for which its founders hoped. “We still intend to make the fullest use we can of the League within the limits which we are obliged to recognise,” said the Foreign Secretary, “and I do not think they are disloyal to the League ideal who have regard for its actual capacity on the political side. It is no fault of the League, and still less of the British Government, but it is the plain truth that if we were to act as some suggest and try to organise a new pattern of collective security against Germany by the present League Powers we should be doing the very thing that would be not only on a long view destructive of hope of winning Germany and other Powers back to European co-operation, possibly in some new form, but also we should be doing something against which we have always worked, namely, the division of Europe into blocs formally ranged against one another and which in our view must greatly aggravate the risk of ultimate catastrophe.”