REAL SOLIDARITY

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 83, Issue 47, 25 February 1939, Page 9

REAL SOLIDARITY

BRITAIN AND FRANCE NO MENTAL RESERVATION MAINTAINING PEACE [ British Official Wireless. ] RUGBY, Feb. 23. A debate was raised in the House ol Lords on the question of AngloFrench relations by Lord Addison, who welcomed Mr. Chamberlain's statement of February 6;—“The solidarity of interest by which France and this country are united is such that any threat to the vital interest of

F-rance, from whatever quarter it came, must evoke the immediate cooperation of this country.” Replying to the debate, the Foreign Secretary, Lord Halfax, said that the statement, of course, represented the unanimous view of the British Government, and the public response to it constituted, he thought, an impressive testimony of the substantial unanimity of the whole country on that question. There had been attempts in certain quarters to under-estimate or qualify Mr, Chamberlain’s assurance

of solidarity with France. “Any such attempts as those I must greatly regret, since it would be a profound error to suppose that any metal reservation of any kind accompanied Mr. Chamberlain’s words,” he said. The declaration, indeed, was quite clear and unmistakable, and, translated into a homely phrase, it was: “Halt—major road ahead!" That was its purpose. No Menace To Others. It was not necessary to make verbal assertions of the British solidarity with France. That solidarity would shortly again be proved by the welcome the country would give President Lebrun. It was not only the geographical situation that drew Britain close to France, but identity of interests and completeness of mutual understanding. Those factors were the best guarantee against the danger that under certain circumstances one might be tempted to subordinate its policy to that of the other. “The Anglo-French solidarity is not, and never has been intended to constitute any menace of any sort to a third party,” he declared. “The records of both Governments and the efforts of both Governments have made to maintain peace are sufficient evidence of the truth of that statement.” Referring to differences between Italy and France, the Foreign Secretary said that in one respect they did not concern Britain, but in another sense they concerned Britain very closely, for not only were the British relations with France on a solid foundation but they had been glad recently to have restored the relations with Italy, and hoped to maintain those relations on a basis of com-

plete cordiality. Lord Halifax stated that neither the French nor the Italian Government had shown any desire for any third-party mediation. He went on to refer to suggestions which he had seen been made abroad that if the British Government stood for peace there were others in England who stood for war and that that fact justified suspicions regarding the purpose of British re-armament. "I should have thought," declared Lord Halifax amid cheers, "that everyone must have recognised that there is no war party in this country. There is no party or statesman who would for one moment contemplate an aggressive war or who would get any support for such a policy. To hold such ideas shows that such people are singularly ignorant of the British nation.”

British Tenacity in Defence. There was another diametrically opposed idea which had a certain currency in some quarters abroad and which interpreted the British love of peace as a sign of weakness. That was as completely uninformed as the other. "Let them make no mistake," said Lord Halifax, "the material and moral resources of Britain are enormous, and the spirit of our people has in no way altered. We do not desire a test of strength, for we believe that wars unsettle more than they ever settle and that there arc no questions which, given good will, cannot be brought to a solution by discussion. But should a test ever be forced upon us our people will be found to-day not less tenacious in defence of their liberty than they have ever been."

NOT DEFINED YET

PRECISE DIFFERENCES. FRANCE AND ITALY. LONDON, Feb. 23. In making his remarks in the House of Commons that neither the French nor the Italian Governments had shown any desire for third-party mediation in their present differences, Lord Halifax added: ‘Of course nothing of that sort can be expected unless and until it is desired by both parties. Indeed, at present the Italian Govern, ment has not formally indicated what lit thinks are the precise points of difference between itself and France.”