EUROPE AND BRITISH POLICY
By SIR EVELYN WRENCH ATOUR of a dozen countries during the last few weeks, originally undertaken to study . Balkan problems after a prolonged absence, afforded excellent opportunity for gauging Europe's reactions to British policy at Geneva during the present crisis.
In most of the Balkan countries there are dailies in French, while in Yugoslavia . there are German. papers, but most of the news in these papers consists, of reprints from other journals and is usually twenty-four hours old. It was tantalising in a tram in Istanbul, in a cafti at Sofia or Athens to watch residents absorbed in reading the flaming headlines of their local Press and not to understand a word. Rumours were rife. At Athens we were told Britain and Italy were at war ! In Dubrovnik that King George had cabled to the King of Italy hoping that there would be no conflict between the two nations. Sometimes we would be lucky enough to get friendly inhabitants to translate the startling headlines only to find they referred to the views or anticipations of some correspondent at Rome, Geneva or Berlin with no sort of official basis.
Europe's general attitude today is one of cynicism. Confidence in humanity, in the League and in the good intentions of one's neighbours seems to have vanished.
The idealism that swept over the continent in the immedi- ate post-War years is no more. In the early stages of the Abyssinian crisis there was considerable distrust of British foreign policy. SiirPrising as it may seem to Englishmen who have not crossed the Channel this summer, the altru- istic nature of the present British policy was widely mis- understood. There are still 'apparently tens of thousands of continental Europeans who think that the British Foreign Office is inhabited by super-men—Machiavellis who understand to perfection every move in the political game. They look admiringly at Downing Street and wish their own Ministries for Foreign Affairs were as, competently staffed., At Budapest station, just as I was leaving for Belgrade, a government official rushed up and .congratulated me on " Britain's master coup." I knew of no stroke of genius recently performed in Downing Street ; during the Simon regime priceless opportunities of guiding Europe along the path of collective security had been thrown . away. My friend was excited and waved a cable in my face. " This is splendid—you have done Mussolini in the eye—what a master-stroke—so like the British ,to work so quietly." I. was bewildered till my friend read, out the message aloud referring to the Riekett oil-concessions. When, on the following day, details of the British master-stroke appeared in the Press some of the references to the nation of shop-. keepers were. none too friendly.
I rarely remember such a complete misconception of the fundamentals of British foreign policy. The atmosphere did not 'improve till Sir Samuel Hoare made his great speech at Geneva. And even after that masterly expose of .British intentions it was depressing still to find in many quarters a misunderstanding of our aims. Foreigners who., visit England frequently recognise that Great Britain. is perfectly sincere in her devotion to the League and that our goal is collective security. How are we to ensure that the • newspaper- reading public of the continent is correctly informed as to our aims That is a major problem in Great Britain's relations with Europe.
We must recognise the fact that in more than half of Europe the Press is officially controlled. Editors are no longer free agents. Their views are dictated from above. Each leading country has its Ministry of Public " Enlightenment " to instruct the public in its outlook. The people of all countries—obviously at the moment Italy must be excluded from the survey —are friendly to Great Britain, but the Press in large parts of Europe by no means reflects the views of the man in the street. During the past summer the dis- interestedness of British policy has been misinterpreted by the Press in France, Germany, Poland, Austria and elsewhere. Sometimes I almost wished the modern printing-press and wireless had never been invented. Italian misrepresentation or British aims is natural. Countries at war, and in moments of crisis do not think clearly, but the attitude of the French Press, reflected in the extracts reprinted in *the Balkan capitals, was depressing.
In late July, before I started on my wanderings, at an international conference at Oxford, German, French and Italian friends admitted that they were surprised by the genuine devotion to the League of Nations they had found in Great Britain, although they implied that it was comparatively easy for Great Britain, removed from the storm-centre of Europe, to toy with Utopianism. They said " Europeans who have not studied British public opinion at first hand think that your devotion to the League is because you wish to preserve the sight's quo ; John Bull's appetite for territory is sated, and lie merely wishes to live at peace to enjoy his far-lung possession while the land-hungry and raw-material-less nations look on enviously ! " As I read articles in the European. Press . in September to the effect that British opposition to Italy's forward move in Abyssinia was in reality due to Great Britain's desire to control Lake Tsa.na and the Waters of the Nile and to her fear of powerful Italian colonies on both sides of Egypt, I often thought of these Oxford discussions.
There is, however, a brighter side to the Picture'. Despite the misconceptions of certain newspapers there is a genuine admiration for Great Britain in most countries.
In almost every country I visited, especially in the Balkans, people expressed the fervent hope that Great Britain would not withdraw from Europe. Curiously enough it was in the Balkans that there was a real appreciation of British leadership. at Geneva. The only criticism I heard was in the form of questions why had Great. Britain not spoken thus strongly in support of the collective system before.
One thing is certain. The moral leadership, of Europe is ours if we will but take it. The small nations are looking to us as never before.. In Bulgaria, Greece and elsewhere British Gladstonian Liberalism is gratefully remembered: Despite the Press there is a great volume of public opinion that hears in the .words of Sir Samuel Hoare and Mr. Eden a note of hope for Europe, and believes it is the true voice of Britain, .
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