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JAPAN'S NAVAL PLANS.
FACTOR IN WORLD AFFAIRS.
Danger to British Shipping.
LONDON, March 23.— Discussing
Japan's naval plans — a £120,500,000, six-
year building programme was announced
early in the month — the naval corres-
pondent of the "Manchester Guardian"
states:— "The safety of British merchant-
ment in the triangle between New Zea-
land, Hong Kong and Ceylon, in which
approximately 400 British ships are mov-
ing every day, is one of today's vital
problems and one which has weighed
heavily in all Cabinet meetings in the
past tragic months.
"We have not that preponderance of
sea power which the Parliamentary Sec-
retary to the Admiralty (Mr. Shake-
speare) optimistically claimed in Intro-
ducing the Navy Estimates in the House
of Commons on March 16 — which would
enable us to face a direct challenge in
battle by any probable combination of
foes. A combination of the Axis Pow-
ers with Japan would provide very seri-
ous problems."
The correspondent expresses the
opinion that the statement by the
Japanese Navy Minister (Admiral Yonai)
in the Diet on March 6 on Japan's plans
should be interpreted as meaning that
Janan began the six-year programme in
1937 and is not now undertaking a new
six-year programme. On this assump-
tion he estimates that Japan is building
on planning five battleships, with the
usual quotas of cruisers, destroyers. etc.
"For the allotted sum," he says,
"Japan will be able to build a fleet which,
broadly speaking, will be superior to any
force which could be detached from
European waters to the Far East in the
next 10 years."
The correspondent does not examine
the situation as it would be if the new
Japanese programme were additional to
the 1937 programme, which provided for
four battleships and other vessels. "De-
finite knowledge on this point." he says,
"is vitally important to Britain and Aus-
tralia, yet Japan's policy is to make the
gaining of information concerning her
programme as difficult as pos-
sible."
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