Criticism against the British Government for enabling the shipment to Egypt of surplus armaments “reconditioned” in Belgium mounted in the press here today, following the admission last night by the Foreign Office that 190 British Valentine tanks had been reshipped to Egypt from continental ports.
Press criticism of the deals has increased to the point where the Foreign Office has found it not only necessary to authorize revelation of some details by its spokesman but has also scheduled a more formal, official statement to be issued tomorrow. A major attack on the government is expected when the House of Commons reassembles after the first of the year, the Express reports. A demand for a full investigation has been made publicly Socialist Leader Shinwell, and a “national investigation” was urged again today in an editorial in the Labor Party’s Daily Herald.
A Daily Express report from Brussels accuses British officials openly of having engineered some of the deals for armament shipments to Egypt. “Britain knew,” the report states, “that demilitarized Valentine tanks were being rearmed for shipments from Belgium to Egypt. Inspector Authomb, of the Belgian police, has reported officially on the matter to Foreign Minister Henri Spaak. According to this report, Egypt first approached Britain and France with requests for purchase of new tanks, but found the prices too high. The British cut their own prices when Czechoslovakia offered Egypt lower quotations.
“When the Egyptians found Britain’s lower prices for new tanks were still higher than the Czech offers, “the report continues, “Britain offered to sell Egypt demilitarized tanks at rates of four ‘surplus’ tanks for the price of one new one. The British, however, wanted the Egyptians to make their own arrangements for reconditioning the ‘surplus’ tanks. The tank shipments from Antwerp were guarded by armed Egyptian soldiers.”
The report from the Belgian capital declares that, in addition to tanks, Egypt received also British Bren carriers and jeeps, some of the shipments going to Alexandria via Rotterdam, Holland.
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