Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1934-06-14
INTERNATIONAL
NEWS REVIEW
Continued from Page -
Possibilities.

Readers may recall that Germany,
bound by the Versailles peace treaty
to the maintenance of an army not
exceeding 100000 men, insists on the
right to INCREASE this number to 300,-
900; that Great Britain at Geneva
proposed compromise of 100000, and
that France bluntly rejected not only
the German claim but also the con-
ciliatory British proposal, and that
things reached an absolute deadlock
since none would yield.
1t is now said that, possibly, Ger
many will be satisfied with some con-
cessions which other powers are will
ling to give in order to secure re-
newed German participation in the
disarmament conference, and that
France may be willing to yield
ground, provided a promise of some
sort of guarantees of her national
security is forthcoming.
This, however, is merely a report,
so far. 1t will all be gone over at
the individual conferences now about
to take place in some of the European
capitals.
| conference STATUS.
Ever since the day when the dis
armament conference was reopened
May 80, it has been evident that no
international treaty about reduction
and limitation of ornaments could be
expected until an agreement had been
established between Germany and
France. 1t was feared that the con-
ference would go on the rocks, and
SO it might have done, had it not
been for Norman H. Davis, head of
the United States delegation at Gen
eva; he proposed to France and Great
being should center about making
Germany come back to Geneva, and
after further conferences between the
great-power diplomats it was decided
to go ahead. The upshOt of it all is
that the conference, technically, is
to be continued, but in reality there
will be no plenary meetings
conversations among the statesmen.
So that the conference as such is
neither adjourned, recessed nor &C
tive: It's immediate status is that of
suspended animation.
Far East.
When Fuminaro Konoye. prince of
Japan, called on President Roosevelt
at the White House the other day,
the rumor of meeting in Hawaii
between Japanese officials and the
American executive was revived.
One of the intricate situations of
world affairs has to do with Far
Eastern problems, and there are GER
tain things that might profitably be
discussed by Foreign Minister Koki
Hirota of Japan and the president of
the United States.
Among such problems is that of the
almost total exclusion of Japanese
nationals from the United States-an
immigration law clause which has
caused a lot of bad blood in Japan
where it was felt as an insult, and
as an insinuation that Japan had not
kept it's eentlemen's agreement with
America; also, there is the Japanese
declaration of April II, this year, by
which China was restrained from OBJ
tanning foreign loans from western
powers for political or military pur
poses, and also forbidden to import
foreign military airplanes. In this
country the Japanese statement is
considered a violation of a number of
treaties. and a slamming shut of the
Open Door through which trade with
China proceeds.
Navy Question.
Immediately Oversh allowing other
questions is that Of the relative size
of the British, the American and the
Japanese navy; there is in existence,
since 1880, a naval treaty which main
tains the 5-5-3 ratio of the Washing
ton treaties of 1922, and Japan is
disguised with that because it is felt
at Tokyo that Japan is entitled to
parity with the two other great sea
powers. Next year a formal confer
ence will be held for further discus
sion, and a short time ago prelim-
mary negotiations were begun be-
tween London, Washington and Tokyo,
making it quite certain that Japan
is not willing to recede from its pres
ent claim: She wants a navy as strong
as that of Great Britain and the
United States.
1t is not impossible that Mr.. Roose
welt and Mr.. Hirota, if they meet this
summer at Honolulu, can pave the
way for compromises and smooth ne