EIRE AS NEUTRAL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 20 November 1939, Page 6

EIRE AS NEUTRAL

MR DE VALERA’S EXPOSITION. TRADE AND OTHER PROBLEMS. A review of Eire's position as a neutral in the war was given by Mr de Valera in a speech in the Dail. Ho said that, although the country was not at war, the position of the community was going to be serious. This type of emergency was a new one for their people. In the last war Eire was part of the British State; now they had an Irish Government, independent and responsible to the Irish people. But their independence and separateness had brought about problems which were not experienced at all during the last war. Some of the questions that were asked in the House seemed to suggest that it was possible by Government action to save the people completely from the consequences of this war. He did not think that was possible. The people of Eire were not going out to offer their lives and to shed their blood, but the consequences of the war wore going to bo felt. There was going to be a complete disruption of the ordinary methods of trade. Although their policy had reduced by one-half their dependence on outside countries, nevertheless they were still I dependent on outside for fundamental industrial activities. Some 50 per cent of their imports came from Great Britain .and some 90 per cent of their exports went to the same belligerent. Defending the mobilisation of the Army, he said that it was going to prove expensive. but it was a necessary measure to maintain the neutrality of the nation. Many people had a false idea of the present, situation. They were, in fact, in Ihe centre of a theatre of war. and if they wanted to maintain neutrality and defend their territory from being used by belligerents, the bigger the force they were able to j afford the better.