Evening star., 1940-04-06
Frunco-British Unity

since Great Britain and France
locked arms last September to put
an end to the menace of Hitlerism,
the accord between the cross chan
mel neighbors has been of a fiber
even more closely woven than the
old Entente Cordiale. In every thea
ter OF activity associated with con-
duct OF war against the common foe,
the two countries have presented a
solid front. 1t has proved the despair
of Nazi diplomacy. which hardly
wells its purpose to split the grand
alliance" asunder or to depict Britain
as the one and only foe.
The French have not succumbed
at any stage to these transparent
Establishments. AS the campaign
drags on. their loyalty to the sister
democracy persists. The Reynaud
government, as one of its first pro-
nouncements, emphasized the insev-
erability of the accord with Brit
ain-a sentiment which Prime Min
lister Chamberlain on his part sell
dom omits an opportunity to stress.
The allies are in firm agree
ment to wage war together to the
victorious end and to make peace
only jointly.
Nothing could portray the init
macy Of Franco-British solidarity
more graphically than the idea now
informally under discussion in Lon
don, for forming a British French
Parliament to deal with broad ques-
tions of common concern. Such
consummation probably would be
historically unique. The French OF
course, boast of no parliamentary
career comparable with the mother
of parliaments, but in modern times
parliamentary government" includ-
ing ministerial responsibility to the
elected representatives of the people,
has been in vogue in both countries.
1t has been even far more flexible in
France, which swaps cabinet horses
over night and has had as many as
four or five different ministries
within a week. British governments,
except on rare emergency occasions,
reign for as long as five years and
"fall," after votes of lack of conf
dence, only exceptionally within that
statutory tenure.
Since outbreak of the present war
Britain and France have fused many
major governmental activities. One
OF their first measures was to estab-
lish a joint purchasing commission
in the United States. In November
OF last year they established the
Allied Supreme Economic Council
for common action in the fields of
air, munitions, war materials, food,
shipping and economic warfare. It
was agreed that the two countries
would draw up their import pro-
grams together and avoid competi-
tion in purchases from abroad. Their
resources in raw materials, means of
production and tonnage would be
used in the common interest.
On December IL Finance Minister
Reynaud promulgated Franco
British agreement for financial CO.
operation. It calls for a fixed
exchange rate of 176.5 francs to the
pound without involving gold opera
tions and for a pooling of foreign
assets, so that neither government
will raise any foreign loan or credit
without consent of the other. This
arrangement is to be continued for
six months after the end of the war.
Thus the foundations are laid for
even closer Anglo-French unity in
the form of common parliament
for discussion and decision Of certain
broad issues Of war and peace policy.
The mere fact that such an innova-
ton is found debatable is sufficient
answer to Nazi taunts that the allies
are bound together with ropes of
sand and not hoops of steel. Accord
Ing to the Daily Mail, the proposed
parliamentary merger contemplates
"a permanent partnership which
would make the two great empires
so powerful a force for peace that no
aggressor would dare challenge it,"
kensinqton Parkway