File No. 860c.48/60
The Department of State to the British Embassy
Memorandum
The Department of State presents its compliments to the British Embassy and has the honor to acknowledge receipt of its memorandum dated May 21 last, with reference to certain information received from the British Foreign Office to the effect that great distress prevails among the Polish refugees in Russia and that the refugee organization then in existence would soon be compelled to cease its operations unless it were possible to receive financial assistance from the Allies.
In reply to the inquiry of the British Government as to whether the United States Government considers that it would be possible for it to join in opening a credit for the relief of these refugees in Russia, the Department of State desires to say that the Government of the United States concurs in the opinion that an Allied credit should be opened for the relief of these refugees but deems the undertaking inadvisable at present because of the lack of effective responsible organizations for the distribution of relief funds. When, however, governmental and military conditions become such as to permit of the establishment of an effective organization to carry out the matter in accordance with the aims of the Allies, the Department of State will again address the British Embassy on the subject.