Peiping, July 25.
Again intervene in the European war as an ally of Great Britain, Mr. Eugene Chen, former foreign minister, stated in an interview here that had his earlier warning to this effect been the) needed by Chungking, king, it would have been difficult for Britain to close the cti text of Mr. Chen' stateyws:—it/ is impossible to ignore the published report that many, including some influential Chinese leaders in Eh are demanding "a realistic re-orientation of Chinese foreign policy" in the direction of pious, asutidon gi, the m og às à n o puta decision to close the route. While no influential Chinese leader in Chungking will ex-himself in this sense without "you have it?" he áskéd. decisive of the Japanese offensive position in relation to British Imperial interests in the Far East, he would not have agreed to close the Burma route whether or not it is only part of a larger tripartite pact for the settlement of the China Incident and another East Asiatic problem. His vigorous mind Would then have realized that (a) if Britain had refused to close the route, it was possible for Japan herself to do so by an invasion of Yunnan (the possibility of which is envisaged by the governor of the province who is actually preparing to meet it) or by Serial bombardment of strategic Yun-mah cefitres from Indo-China, Japan tow in a position to compel e ch to grant passage or air-bases there; (b) Japan will not or is unlikely to attack Hongkong or commit any act or conclude any alliance nëcèssarily or automatically involving war against Britain as long as a British defeat is not reasonably tértain in the struggle with Germany; (c) no one knows better than the panese Navy that, with British sea-power unimpaired' and British air strength swiftly increasing, a British defeat in the West is at present not a reasonable certainty.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.