Evening star., 1932-02-28
BY FRANK III. SIMONDS.

- ENEVA, February 27.-A
the Disarmament Conference
drifts into its second month
~ it is possible to draw certain
conclusions. In the frs
place, it is clear that in the larger
sense the conference has reached ar
impaSse for the simple reason that il
still exceeds the ability OF the states
manship of Europe to end the last war
And manifestly, as long as one group
of nations refuses to accept the result
of the world conflict and another de-
clineS to modify them all international
relations, whether in conferences such
as this or in ordinary diplomatic deal
1ngs, continue to revoive about this
fixed point.
Today 65,OOO,oOO Germans are re-
solved not to pay reparations at all
not to endure longer the unilateral dis
armament status imposed upon them
by the peace treaties, and not to ac-
cept their present frontiers, which are
the result of a lost war. This last
determination is shared by some TO-
100000 AustrianS, Hungarians anc
BulgarianS. Thus a bloc of 85 millions
of peoples in the center or Europe con-
tinue in purpose at war against their
existing circumstances, m conflict with
these conditions.
Now, on the other side, stand 1885,
100000 of French, Belgians, Poles
CZechoSlovaks, Rumanians, JugoSlavs
for all of whom the purpose of the
German group to modify the territorial
decisions of the peace treaties is ar
immediate threat. France is appre-
henSive about AlSace-Lorraine, Belgium
over Eupen Malmedy, Poland about the
corridor through Upper Silesia, Czecho-
slovakia about the proposed union OF
Austria and Germany, all three of the
little entente states about Hungarian
claims, JugoslaVia and Rumania about
Bulgarian demands.
Italy on Other Side.
This situation is further complicated
by the fact that Italy, with the weight
of 40,000C00, is thrown upon the Ger
man side by Premier Mussolini's de-
sires to upset the preponderant posi-
ton that France now holds in Europe
by reason of her alliances. Thus you
have the fact that two groups of states
each numbering about 125 millions of
peoples are actually in deadlock. Ger
many and her allies of the war are seek
ing territorial revision, supported by
Italy, seeking power and prestige France
and her present allies are striving to
maintain the status quo of the treaties
1t is obvious, therefore that any in
ternatlonal conference would inevitably
be dominated by this circumstance
This is particularly true in the case of
the Disarmament Conference for the
simple reason that the superior armies
OF France and her allies alone enable
her to maintain the status quo in the
European influence and in the face of
Italys ambitions. Thus 1t is in
evitable that Germany and italy will
undertake to break down the French
military power as necessary pre-
liminary to their common purpose of
achieving their respective aims.
France and her allies, on the con-
trary VIII just as certainly endeavor,
before agreeing to reduce their armies,
to set up some other means of main
tanning the existing situation And that
Is precisely what the proposal of Andre
Tardieu, like all other French proposals
since the peace conference in Paris, is
aimed at. It will be recalled that Tar
dleu proposed the League of Nations
be authorized and empowered to act as
a police power to restrain and ccerce
any attempts of violence to upset the
existing order, and, of course, violence
alone could upset it.
Stick to Nationalism.
If we examine all of the several dis
armament proposals of the nations be-
longing to the two groups, it will be
quite evident that underneath the dis
guise of enormous enthusiasm for the
moral and economic issues involved in
the matter of disarmament lies the
same deliberate purpose to employ the
worldwide desire for advancing dis
armament purely as national thesis
But it is just as clear that France and
her allies won't give up their arms while
such a surrender could prove such a
prelude to mutilation of treaty ar
rangement, while Germany and her
associates will not agree to system
of disarmament which would for an