Fascist military power may be described as an instrument to equalize land possession and is thus mainly directed against the British Empire.
While one half of Europe is engaged in annexing or controlling the small nations as Jo start, and the other half is doing nothing to prevent it, the situation in the Pacific has been momentarily dwarfed. It is, however, a constant factor and one of greater importance to Britain in the Jong run than the division of the European continent into armed camps in the race for military powe:
Ca-laterally the arming of Europe serv a future purpose in the Far East where the challenge of Japan to mastery over Pacific waters is more subtle than Germany's inidation of Central Europe or Italy's march of the Roman Legions in Africa. The At-antic and Indian Oceans remain unchallonged now but the Pacific Ocean leads into the Indian Ocean, and towards Africa and the Europeun armed camps there A more direct touch between Europe and the Pacific lies in the geographical situation of Burma and India where British land power is largely grouped. If a Pacific Power emerges into the Indian Ocean, Europe is thus immediately affected and it may be for this reason that Germany and Italy move diplomatically towards Japan. India stirs at the fate of the Chinese and the subject of defence has enlarged its outlook with those whose primary aim had been social up-building.
India is now defence consol ahead to the time w the w from the Pacific ma; touch he Ghandi, no friend of the Bri sh, scents the danger, and has said that India cannot yet do without the aid of Britain. He does not speak of defence but his words are just an eastern interpretation of what his fellow-countrymen are thinking and he is extreme-clever in touching in quickly to mass perturbation.
It is a plain fact that the focus of world unrest will move eastwards in the grab for land and that the a India at occupies the front line of resistance to any threat to the Empire as a whole; and the role of India's Field Army will be to hold the fort and to take such offensive-defensive action as may be possible pending the arrival of reinforcements from England. India's partnership in the Empire entitles her to full support in a major danger of this kind as owing to her geographical position her territories may happen to have to bear the brunt of the attack and endure all the miseries and loss of and by warfare at close range.
In essence Pacific communication is the defence problem and is represented by a strategic triangle whose northern apex is in the Himalayas and whose base line runs from South Africa to Western Australia. In and round this triangle are four fleets, as many air Zorces, and the Indian Army, 170,- 000 men, and the British Army rising steadily to 100,000 plus a strategic reserve to be held somewhere.
With Singapore control point the triangle's eastward look-out is southeast with spearhead forces on the incoming lines of communication from the southern waters of the South Pacific Seas and the northerly route down the China Seas. From Asia to Australia the outward patrol connects the two continents, The south line of the triangle connects Africa and Australia. The west line shuts off Europe. The form of defence suggests the shape of an aeroplane. The forward head is the new Australian force, the main body is Singapore and the tips of the wings are Hongkong and Darwin bases and fleets. The tai! is the Royal and Royal Indian Navies.
Taking the Asian problem as a whole the main defence of India is by sea. Air power can operate destructively but cannot hold sea or land. Conquests have to be made by sea power whose long arm on land is the army which comes along the conquered seaway protected by the informative vision of the aeroplane. America equally with Britain is concerned ing keeping the Pacific open as a free way between the Panama and Suez Canals, which both lead to the Atlantic, as the strategical water ways of the two hemispheres.
The two nations can shut them, and, united can preserve the Pacific against any combination and by it ensure the safe heritage of the earth to the democracies and free people whose liberties in part are being destroyed by the vicious force of power-polities whose domination means the individual's enslavement and the denial of his soul as a Divine gift.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.