File No. 763.72111N83/53

The Chargé in Norway ( Schoenfeld) to the Secretary of State

[Telegram]

964. British Minister informed me today that he had been urgently and peremptorily instructed to demand of the Norwegian Government that within four days the latter lay a mine field in the outer channel off Skjaergaard, south of Bergen, and thereby carry into effect the intention of the Norwegian Government’s own decree of January 13 [30], 1917, concerning entry of belligerent submarines into Norwegian territorial waters. See this Legation’s despatch No. 331 of February 1, 1917.1 British Minister carried out his instructions yesterday afternoon and presented this demand verbally to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, at the same time pointing out that he was not presenting an ultimatum but that the demand must be complied with and stating categorically that he, Foreign Minister, must give no hint of the conversation to Berlin. The Foreign Minister promised a reply within two days.

British Minister told me that inasmuch as we were also interested in the extensive mine field in the North Sea (I understand from the naval attaché of this Legation that the mine field substantially consists of mines constructed and mainly laid by American naval forces), he had suggested to his Government that you be asked to instruct me to take analogous action vis à vis the Norwegian Government. British Minister said that the demand of his Government merely involved obtaining the Norwegian Government’s consent to perform its neutral obligation under the latter’s own decree of January, 1917, and was simply an application of the same principles as underlie the action of the Swedish and Danish Governments in mining their territorial waters and thereby preventing Allied access to the Baltic, all of which the British Minister said that he had told the Minister for Foreign Affairs.

[Page 1770]

I fully concur in the suggestion of the British Minister to his Government regarding the desirability of your instructing me to present similar representations to the Norwegian Government. There is no doubt whatever, according to practically universal testimony, including that of the naval attaché, that Norwegian territorial waters at present constitute the chief [if not?] absolutely the only [channel] for enemy submarines thus rendering partially nugatory the vast expense and labor involved in the establishment of the mine field in the North Sea, not to mention the direct opportunities thus created for the submarines to attack Allied shipping, particularly American transports.

Schoenfeld
  1. Not printed.