817.24/2
The Secretary of State to the Secretary of War (Weeks)
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of October 14, 1921, in which you refer to your letter of May 11,14 discussing the undesirability, as a general policy, of selling arms to other governments. You ask that I inform you as to my opinion of this policy, especially in connection with the proposed sale of arms to the Government of Nicaragua.
A reply to your letter of May 11 was sent to you under date of June 11, 1921, and as a matter of convenience a copy thereof is transmitted herewith.14 You will note that this reply states that this Department feels that each request for the purchase of arms should be considered separately and according to its particular merits.
With regard to the particular case under discussion, I am inclined to think that the sale of the arms requested by Nicaragua would be desirable from the point of view of this Department, in view of our special interest in the maintenance of stable government in that country, and in view of our participation in the supervision of the financial affairs of the Republic. I am informed that Nicaragua has not at the present time sufficient war material to deal effectively with revolutionary bands which have been operating in the northern part of the Republic, and I consider it very desirable that the Government should be placed in a position where it will be able to maintain order.15
I have [etc.]