Evening star., 1923-11-04
|ALL AMERICAN RIGHTS
AT TANCIERS ASSURED
Wishes of All Nations Will Be Given
Consideration by So-Called Medi.
terranean Powers.
BY FREDERICK CUNLIFFE.OwEN.
n E
terranean

BY FREDERICK CUNLIFFE-oWEN.
c. b. K.
TT Is thanks to the United States
that Italy's voice will be heard
at the final settlement of the
thorny problem In connection
with the future Of Tangiers. For the
past ten days the representatives Of
the three powers more Immediately
concerned, namely, Great Britain,
France and Spain, have been in ses-
sion at the foreign Office in London,
with the object OF negotiating some un-
derstanding of the question, and shave
turned. especially since ItaTy's bonn
bardment Of Corfu, a deaf ear to her
persistent demands for the right to
sit at the conferences in London on
the same footing as that of the three
other powers. She insisted that. as
one of the principal Mediterranean
nations. she was entitled to intervene
in any arrangement affecting that
great inland sea. But Great Britain
and France contended that Tangiers
was not on the Mediterranean. but
| outside Its western entrance, and that
| the differences and disputes to which
the city has already given rise were
quite troublesome enough without
laugmenting them by bringing Italy
into the conference, especially in
view Of the aggressive foreign poll
| cies of Premier Mussolini and his
action, not long ago. in landing a
detachment of italian marines at
Tangiers. in defiance Of all existing
arrangements, on the pretext that
| their presence was necessary to pro-
tect italian interests in this virtually
linternationalized city and its en-
vironments.
Old Treaty Cited.
While 1t was admitted that italy
! was largely represented among the
| foreign population at Tangiers. she
| was reminded of the fact that she
| had. by means of treaty with
France, concluded some twelve years
or more ago. renounced her right to
/ intervene in any fashion in the
| Morocco problem, in return for
| Frances undertaking to abstain from
offering any opposition to Italy's In
vasion and conquest Of Tripoli. that.
too. at a moment when King Victor
| Emanuel and his government were
| encountering much diplomatic and
economic obstruction from Germany
| to the enterprise. and armed re-
| sistance, abetted and supported by
Berlin. on the part OF the Ottoman
! Empire. To this Mussolini replied
! that the pledges then given by Italy
1 were restricted wholly to the French
! portion of Morocco, and not to Tan
gfers, which had been, to all fntents
and purposes, internationalized by
| the Congress of Algeciras.
4 EnYoneQn
great powers the United States took
/ 'rt, represented by Henry White,
then Ambassador to France. 1t is on
the strength of his having been a
for the Observation-Disclosures of Tan
giers and for the future of Morocco.
, that the United States government
;ome time ago addressed a request
20 Great Britain. France and to
| .ngiers Issue the American open
door policy should be safeguarded.
The governments to whom this
communication from Washington was
addressed at once realized the i'm
proval OF the United States in any
settlement that they might arrive
at and the additional weight which
1t would carry In the eyes Of the
quentiy. they have announced that
whatever agreement they may reach
in the course of their deliberations, at
| which the wishes of not only the
United States but also of Italy
Greece. Japan. Turkey and also other
nations will receive due considera-
tion, will be ultimately submitted to
plenary international conference for
signature and final agreement, in
which the votes OF the majority will
carry the day.
| 1t is assumed that IL France and
lGreat prifain and SDain and Creece-
that is to say, the majority Of the
Mediterranean powers-come to ar
agreement which has the approval
and Endorsement OF the United States
whose interest In the Issue is purely
economic, her trade with Morocco
ranking In Importance Immediately
next to that of France and Grea.
Britain, Premier Mussoltni will no,
wish to place himself once more in
opposition to the majority Of the for