Evening star., 1941-08-17
Roosevelt Churchill Meeting
Seen as Presaging Vital Moves
Yielding of Vichy Russian Difficulties and Japanese
Threat Bring Wars Dangers Closer
to Western Hemisphere.
Bv Constantine BrO,pn.

/ fields The British military policy is
| long-range one. The cabinet and the
| general staff think Germany will eventu-
ally be defeated by the lack of oil. The
British reinforcements which have been
| sent out during the last five weeks to
Egypt are intended to prevent the Ger
mans from getting to the source Of the
| ultimate victory-oil.
Not an Impressive Policy.
This may be a correct view. All the
! ories seem plausible in this war. But it
is not an impressive policy, especially for
the old-school soldiers.
Meanwhile, Vichy's decision to join
| the Axis has injected new factor in
the war
Since last May, Marshal Petain had
been under terrific pressure from Ber-
lin and from his own associates to ac-
cept complete collaboration with the
Reich. The aged gentleman had been
wavering since the collapse Of the Bal
kans. Some days he believed, with his
Prime Minister, Admiral Darlan, that
VII liiC oidt va tiit AeSANAt
would save the country. Other times he
listened to the. convincing arguments of
our Ambassador to Vichy Admiral Will
liam Leahy. that Great Britain and the
United States will emerge victorious.
The usso-German war started. The
resistance of the Russians did not fail to
impress the old warrior. He, too, saw
hot tto pf
the American "scatterbrain' soldiers,
saw: The need for spectacular interven-
ton by Great Britain with strong land
ing force somewhere in Western Europe.
And despite the pressure from Darlan
and other advocates of complete collabo-
ration with the Reich-a pressure which
at times amounted to political third
degree-he resisted.
No Other Way Out.
Finally. when he realized that the
British were not going to attempt land
ing in Europe and those long transports
conveyed by the British men-of-war
were going toward Alexandria and the
Suez Canal he gave up. He decided
that there was no other way out for
France but to surrender and accept
"lache" (cowardly) policy: to cooperate
with its centuries old enemy against her
last years ally.
The surrender of Vichy-no matter
how the pill is coated for consumption
abroad--is one of those severe blows
which America expected but hoped would
not occur. 1t is immaterial whether the
Germans go to Dakar Immediately or in
short stages.
But from the day they obtain French
permission to take care" of North Africa
in the same way the Japanese are tax
ing care" of Indo-C China, our situation
becomes even more precarious than it
was two weeks ago. The eventual occu-
patton of Dakar means the occupation
of the Cape Verde Islands, which Portu-
gal cannot defend
It means that the sea lanes between
England and the Cape of Good Hope will
be further endangered, and it finally
means that We must be on continual
lookout for an unexpected German coup
on the bulge of Brazil, which lies less
than 1000 miles from the African coast.
In military terms, this means that we
must increase considerably the watch
on the Atlantic; in other words, the pres
ent American naval force in the Atlantic
must be consistently increased.
Far East Threatening.
And this happens at time when the
situation in the Far East is becoming
more threatening.
The Japanese government has received
our olive branch consisting of offers for
Japan's economic rehabilitation; the
possibility of large concessions in Asia
after the war is overland status quo
while the war continues. In exchange
we asked Toxic to abandon the Axis and
to give us positive guarantees that it
will remain quiet for the duration"
AS far as it can be ascertained, the jap
anese government has received these
suggestions with amusement. Nothing
is further from the minds of the Nip
ponese leaders than to abandon a fight
they consider won. When the American
british nroDoSalS reached Toxic the