on devoted to the situation in all its com-fe the absence of surprises since President with his message to the dictators, is determination of every shade of public _ste he seriousness of the hour. While the de-tis Powers are seen as being engaged in to woo the smaller Powers before next Friday, is due to reply to President Roosevelt's appeal, cement in plenty that this does not complete the As the "Sunday Times" observes editorially, however, the diplomatic picture may vary in detail from hour to hour, but one thing is unchanging—that is the present necessity for the British nation to develop its maximum fighting capacity within the minimum time.
The issue of conscription is raised Paris, Apr. 23.
After two days of study of Soviet Russia's proposals, France and Britain today agreed to continue their efforts to reach a triple alliance with Russia excluding general collective security.
French officials are understood te fail to share Moscow's hopes of ent couraging the United States to enter a collective security system covering the Far East. The Soviet Union is said to feel that the United States cannot afford to decline such an invutation because of the necessity of insuring her freedom to markets ip the Orient.
Russia, it is understood, hes proposed an international conference of all nations fearing aggression by the Nazi-Fascist dictators. The Russian proposal, according to French diplomatic sources, would embrace all nations interested in maintaining the status quo in Eastern and Western Europe, the Balkans, the Danube basin and Scandinavia. The purpose would be to write a collective security agreement which would pool all the armed strength of the signatory nations against the totalitarian powers of Germany and Italy in case the latter should engage in further aggression—United Press.
Far East Speculations ured Germany 10 fears of German "Belgium replied that that she had "no President Roosevelt's Council," the reply on the neutrality of tomorrow's meeting of the Cabinet, and give currency to reports that during the past 48-hours France has made a new plea for the introduction of what to this country would be a revolutionary peace-time measure.
The aim of British policy in the Balkans is seen by the Diplomatic Correspondent of the "Sunday Times"
an endeavour to promote neutral bloc of countries (no doubt including Bulgaria) who would be pledged to come to each other's assistance.
The importance of the British and French negotiations with Turkey in connection with the Eastern Mediterranean is underlined by the Diplomatic Correspondent of the "Observer."
Dealing with another important aspect of the growth of the antiaggression front—the obscurity of the relations between Rumania and Poland—the diplomatic correspondent of the "Sunday Times" points onl that conditions have changed since the alliance between the two countries was framed, with a view to their mutual protection against the Soviet, The Rumano-Polish Treaty, the correspondent adds, therefore needs to be brought up to date.
M. Grigore Gafencu (the Rumanian Foreign Minister), he declares, will be able to explain in London—where he is due to arrive today—what progress has been made in this direction—Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.