Continued Peiping, Dec. 9.
The Tientsin blockade, foreign interests in China and the reported Soviet assistance to China were among the subjects discussed at an interview [granted by General Tada, Commander—Chief of the Japanese forces in forth China, to foreign correspon dents. General Tada answered ques-ons put to bim with great frankness, Referring to the Tientsin blockade, General Tada said the main reason for its continuation was. that anti Japanese activities were still not com. pletely eradicated and gave no inication of early cessation. He re~ {used to State the definite conditions: which the Japanese would require fore it was lifted.
Discussing the position of foreigners in North China, General Tada denied that the Japanese intended to drive foreign interests out, The present war, however, he declared, was more dificult than any the Japanese army had. previously waged, and that, though the Japanese would do their utmost to try to avoid trespassing or damaging foreign property, occasional incidents were unavoidable.
General Tada claimed that the Japanese were frank and outspoken, zo that If they intended to exclude foreign interests, they would" not, hesitate to say 80.
Questioned regarding the reported Soviet assistance to China, General Tada expressed the view that Soviet Russia was now giving ald to the Chinese Communists in the northwest which was more than to the Chungking Government.
The Japanese army, concluded General Tada, was chiefly concerned with suppressing communism in the Japan-fosse-occupied areas, rather than out side these areas~Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.