Evening star., 1936-10-08
BRITAIN HASTENS
TOBAR BREACH IN
!. NEUTRALITY PACT
Eden Speeding to London
. for Personal Direction
r. of Policy. >sssa
THREAT OF HOSTILITIES
IN mediterranean SEEN
Soviet Ultimatum Gives Details
of Alleged Shipments Of
Arms, Planes, Gas.
BACKGROUND

BACKGROUND
Outbreak OF ciuil warfare in
Spain betWeen Fascist and Lettists,
controlling the government through
Popular Front, uictorious in elec-
tion OF February Is, brought fears
OF international conflict as result
of assistance lent to rebels by
Fascist countries-Germany and
Italy-and to Lettist government by
France and Russia.
European non-interpention agree
rent, initiated by France after
French government, less than t,Do
iDeeks after the Spanish ciuil pdr
broke out, announced it tUonld re-
main neutral. Committee organized
BY chief European governments to
Oversee execution OF agreement.
(Copyright. 1885, by the Associated Press.D
LONDON, October 8.-Great Brit
ain turned a swift diplomatic hand
today to patch menacing break In
the wall Of European non-interven-
tion in Spain.
Stirred by fiat Soviet Russian
ultimatum threatening to aid the
Madrid government if Fascist States
do not stop" helping the insurgents,
allegedly with guns, planes and other
sinews Of war, Foreign Secretary An
thony Eden broke off his Monaco hol-
1day and turned toward home to per-
sonally direct British policy.
In the, wake Of the Moscow warn
ing came reports that other countries,
as yet unnamed, would question al
legged breaches Of the "hands-off-
Spain" pact at tomorrow's London
meeting of the European non-inter-
vention committee.
Threat Of Open Hostility.
There also was the latent threat
Of open hostility in the Mediterran-
can, should Russian ships seek to
land supplies at Spanish government
ports guarded by Fascist warships.
The Moscow ultimatum was de-
livered to representatives of countries
signatory to the non-intervention pact
in London last night. It detailed al
legged shipments of arms, planes AMI
even poison gas to Spanish Insurgents.
specifically naming Germany. Italy
and Portugal.
The Soviet government cannot
consent to conversion of the nom
interference pact into a screen for con-
cealing military assistance rendered
the rebels against the government by
some participants of the pact" said tn.
statement.
It added: "If violations are not
stopped Immediately. the Soviet gov
eminent will free itself from any obli-
cations to the agreement"
Capt. Eden, en- route home, will
confer in Paris tomorrow with Premier
Leon Blum Of France concerning
Anglo-British action in the new crisis.
The ultimatum to Europe's Fascist
states threw the international situa-
ton surrounding bloody Spain into its
most serious phase since the civil war
broke out.
Abandonment of the general non-
Intervention agreement or even graver
repercussions might follow the Soviet
challenge, observers asserted.
Before Committee Tomorrow.
Moscow's warning she will leave
the sidelines and openly support the
besieged Madrid government unless
Portugal, Germany and italy halt
their alleged backing Of Spanish in
surgents was expected to be considered
by the Neutrality Committee tomor-
row. Great Britain and France, the
former obviously nettled by the Soviet
bombshell, will try feverishly to patch
up the neutrality framework, official
sources predicted.
If such efforts fail, these sources
said, Europe would be divided into even
sharper classifications of Fascist and
Leftist nations.
League Of Nations officials at Geneva
described the situation as of the deep
est gravity. They pondered its effect
upon the Socialist French government
and Premier Blum, who has been be-
sieged by his Leftist supporters to aid
their Popular Front brothers in Spain.
Informed italian sources denied
Premier Mussolini had violated the
"hands of" agreement in answering
the Russian charge Fascist and Nazi
planes are now shelling Spanish So
eialist troops.
Task Nearly Hopeless.
Since Portugal has refused con-
sistently, despite strong British rep
reservations, to participate in the
committees work, it appeared an al
most hopeless task to achieve q genu-
ine, workable neutrality.
The British government was irri-
tated by Moscow's action in making
public its ultimatum; the foreign Of
flee had hoped to withhold the docu-
ment pending tomorrow's committee
meeting.
!. The .ultimatum was delivered by
Moiseyevich Kagan, Soviet represen-
tative on the committee, to represen-
tatives of countries accepting the orig
lima French proposal for non-inter-
yention.
Dates of the alleged breaches of the
non-intervention accord, listed in
the Soviet communication, were ex-
pected to prove most important during
the committee deliberations. The
question was raised whether some
arms shipments mentioned in the
note might not already have been on
the seas en- route to Spanish destina-
tions when the non-intervention pact
went into effect.
The Soviet note, in detailing alleged
German and Italian war shipments
to Spain, some of them through
Portugal, mentioned dates between
September 10 and September 20. The
FIRST meeting Of the Non-Intervention
Committee was held In London on
September 9, although Germany and
italy, with other nations, previously
had agreed to stop such shipments.
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