Evening star., 1925-04-01
ARMS PARLEy CALL
|LL-T|MED, FRENCH
OFFICIALS ASSERT
viii Not Consent to Confer
enCe-Might Be Forced
to Enter.
OBJECTION is BASED
ON FEAR FOR SECURITY
Also Warmly Resents Alleged "De-
sertion" of Allies-Last Con-
ference Recalled.
BY FRANK III. SIMONDS.


at Washington of another disarma-
ment conference there is at least one
French fact which may be worthy of
sote-that is, that, save as a conse-
uuence of coercion exercised through
she debt question. France would
never consent to go to such a con-
ference Even if France goes she
will not agree to any present limi-
.ations of her air or submarine arms,
nor will she consent TO any discus
sion of land armaments whatsoever.
The view of the French and the con-
tiuental nations which are, like
France, condemned to wrestle with
the problem of security. is that the
present moment is singularly map
propriate to talk about limitation of
armaments.
The British at Geneva have just
destroyed the protocol. which for the
French. the Poles. the Czechs and
the Rumanians-indeed. for all the
states with dangerous neighbors-
was a promise of security. AS a
consequence, they feel their situa-
tion to be more insecure than ever
iust now.
Security Placed First.
Moreover. it was accepted as a
basic principle of any discussion of
disarmament when the subject was
broached at Geneva last Fall that the
matter of security must be disposed
of before that of Limitation of arma-
ments could come up. Even the re-
lection of the protocol does not
abolish this agreement in principle.
Now, at the precise moment when
other very important discussions on
the subject of security are going Tor
ward, but as yet have led to nothing
decisive, the French feel it would be
totally unwise. even compromising,
for them or their allies to open an
international debate about their
means of defense. II pending nego-
tiations do have any positive result,
as is recognized to be possible even
here, then on the basic situation thus
created the problem of the rearrange-
ment of military and naval strength
may come up. but only then.
Again, it is necessary to recall that
the French have very bitter memories
of the last Washington conference.
They do not blame ex-Secretary
Hughes or the United States for what
happened, but they do believe that
what happened did represent a tri-
umph for British diplomacy at their
expense. They are determined not to
let themselves be put in the same
difficult situation again. TIL amount
of latent sentiment over the Wash
ington conference still surviving here
is rather impressive and must be con-
sidered as a permanent factor where
France is concerned.
Limitation Improbable.
Nothing can be done in Europe to-
day in the matter of limiting land
armies. The French will probably
reduce the period of service in their
army from Is months to one year be-
fore long. This will automatically
reduce the number of men under
arms by about 100, 900. The radical
Socialist government now in power is
pledged to this, but it is the only lin
itation which is even conceivable, and
il is not by any means certain.
Neither Poland nor Rumania, for
example, both openly menaced by a
bolshevist attack. could be persuaded
to reduce their armies by a man.
Speaking broadly, the situation is the
same all over Europe. Armies as
they now exist express the degree of
danger which the respective coun-
tries feel The method of achieving
reduction must be by first reducing
the dangers.
Interest Only Academic.
II the United States, Japan and
Great Britain desire to agree to limit
their cruiser strength or their sub
marine force. If they desire to put
limits on their air force. such agree
ments will awaken only academic in
terest here. But France. regarding &
her submarine arms, her sole method
of protecting her communications
sRIith her colonies. from which she
must bring troops to defend herself
in Europe. regarding her air forces.
her first of defense, will hear of no
reduction.
France Is at the present moment
the most pacific government in it's re-
cent history; ii is also in its most
pacifst mood since the Franco -Prus-
sian War. But even in this govern
ment this mood would not be an
adequate permit at present to sweep
ing agreements about French de-
fense. All the people of France feel
that both the United States and
Great Britain have abandoned France
after having promised a guarantee
of security. They resent this, but
they have accepted the fact. They are
not now, however. willing to listen
to arguments from these nations that
they reduce their own means of de-
fense, following what they regard as
q frank desertion.
Might BE Forced In.
Under compulsion, France might
perhaps be brought again to a con-
ference, although l doubt 1t. But
at conference the French delega-
ton could not be brought to con-
sent to anything which would per-
NIT any useful achievement A new
conference would just open at a point
of deadlock where the other ended.
| am bound to say, too, that COM
ment which l have heard as to the
proposal of such a conference-com- =
ment in many cities from representa-
tives of various nations-all is of one
sort-regret that the question has
been opened at this time, conviction
that 1t can lead to no useful results,
fear that II may have as serious con-
sequences as the last Washington
conference which led to the fall OF
ysFtand, alienation of France from
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