PERMANENT BASES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 25 September 1943, Page 4

PERMANENT BASES

NEEDED BY AMERICAN NAVY FOR POST-WAR POLICING OF PACIFIC VIEWS OF COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN (By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright) (Received This Day, 11.20 a.m.) WASHINGTON, September 24. A powerful United States Navy in the Pacific will constitute the most potent argument for preserving peace in that area, said Mr Magnusson, chairman of a special House of Representatives naval sub-com-mittee, in calling for the permanent acquisition of sea and air island bases in order to make the United States Navy an effective post-war policeman of the Pacific. Mr Magnusson added that his committee would consult State Department officials and subsequently the Navy Secretary (Colonel Knox) to ascertain what additional Pacific bases were required and what Congress must do to acquire them. "We are not building the largest navy in the world just to sink it after the war,” he said, “and we are not building it to keep it chained to the shores of this country to rust after victory, so in order to keep the Navy afloat we have just got to have bases. Why, we have so many ships now that we could not get them all into continental harbours.” Mr Barry has submitted a House of Representatives a resolution urging a Pacific Charter, similar to the Atlantic Charter. He suggests that a Congressional committee be directed to study and determine the principles and policies which should be observed in order to assure the peoples of the Pacific area the greatest possible measure of peace, freedom and security in future.