Office of the Historian

724.3415/3536: Telegram

The Minister in Bolivia (Des Portes) to the Secretary of State

La Paz, February 13, 1934—4 p.m.
[Received 10:11 p.m.]

11. The Bolivian reply was made on the 11th to the Bolivian Minister at Buenos Aires for presentation to the Commission on the 15th. It expresses pleasure that Paraguay accepts principle of arbitration but laments that the proposed treaty is not one of peace but armistice and would not settle basic territorial question, leaving cause for future war; that the Paraguayan seven conditions of security indicate Paraguay progresses in demands as Bolivia cedes.

Bolivia counterproposes treaty stipulating the juris arbitration proposed by League Commission to Bolivia having following terms:25

1st.
Agreement to arbitrate making known maximum concessions.
2d.
Arbitration to be juris and under the declaration of the 19 nations of August, ’32.
3d.
Arbitral agreement to fix maximum pretensions according to the official statements to the League; Bolivia to the confluence [Page 51] Pilcomayo, Paraguay Rivers; Paraguay to the Otuquis River and the Chiriguanos Cordillera; The Hague Court not to leave the area or enter into other points not in the agreement.
4th.
Rules of procedure in the agreement.
5th.
Security, demobilization, military clauses to be arranged between the two countries under the auspices of League delegates.

Bolivia reiterates that if juris arbitration accepted obstacles will not be placed to conditions of security contemplating equality.

Texts of the proposal of the 7th26 and the Bolivian reply of 11th26 are being sent by next mail.

Repeated to Buenos Aires, Asunción.

Des Portes
  1. The Bolivian reply in full, dated La Paz, February 12, 1934, is printed in Republica de Bolivia, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores y culto, Memoria presentada al Congreso de 1984 (La Paz, 1934), pp. 606–607. See also League of Nations, Official Journal, July 1934, pp. 795–796.↩
  2. Republica de Bolivia, Ministerio de Relaciones Bxteriores y Culto, Memoria presentada al Congreso de 1934, pp. 605, 606.↩
  3. Republica de Bolivia, Ministerio de Relaciones Bxteriores y Culto, Memoria presentada al Congreso de 1934, pp. 605, 606.↩