890d.01/164: Telegram

The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in France (Herrick)

466. Your written despatch 3645, November 7. Department desires you to communicate with the Foreign Office in the sense of the following:8

“My Government has been gratified to note from your communication of November 2d that it is the desire of the French Government [Page 7] to proceed promptly to the conclusion of a convention with respect to the mandate for Syria and the Lebanon, and considers that the communication which you were good enough to address to me under date of November 2d and the draft convention enclosed with your Communication furnish a satisfactory basis for such action.

Note has been taken of the statement in your communication of November 2d that the benefits of the agreement which your government has reached with Italy, as therein outlined, would be assured to the United States of America. I assume that your Government would also be prepared to accord to the United States and to American nationals most-favored-nation treatment not only as regards the recent agreement with Italy but with respect to any other agreements relating to Syria and the Lebanon which might be concluded by the mandatory power with other governments.

On this understanding, which my Government will be happy to have the French Government confirm, it will be possible to proceed to the signing of the Convention with certain modifications stated below.

Previous drafts of the proposed Convention with regard to Syria and the Lebanon contain no provision for the extension to the mandate territory of treaties of extradition between the United States and France. You will recall that such provision is made in the conventions relating to Togoland and the Cameroons9 and my Government considers that it would be desirable to add an article to the proposed convention similar to Article 6 of those conventions. Further, it is suggested for the consideration of the French Government that it would be desirable to provide that the consular convention between the United States and France should be applicable to Syria and the Lebanon.

In case the French Government is in agreement on the above mentioned points, the following article, to be numbered Article 7 (the present Article 7 to be Article 8), might be inserted: ‘The provisions of all extradition or consular treaties or conventions which may be in force between the United States and France shall apply to the mandated territory.’

The French Government will undoubtedly appreciate the importance of safeguarding the position of consular officers particularly in a territory such as Syria where capitulatory rights have long been enjoyed and my Government is confident that France, as the mandatory power in Syria, will take the necessary measures to effect this. It would be particularly gratifying to my Government if in addition to extending to Syria and the Lebanon the Consular Convention, the French Government should see its way to indicate its intention to assure the special immunities and privileges of consular officers in this mandate territory.

I am further instructed to inform Your Excellency that my Government is prepared to send me full powers for the prompt signature of the Convention in the form in which it was communicated with your note of November 2d with the addition of the article suggested above.”

[Page 8]

Also point out orally to the French Foreign Office the following minor points which appear to involve clerical errors in the draft of the Convention: (1) First paragraph of Preamble, French text “l’Empire ottoman” should probably read “la Turquie.” (2) Third paragraph of Preamble after terms of Mandate, English text, phrase “with respect to” should read “with regard to.” (3) Last sentence present Article VII, English text, “the present Convention” should read “it”.

Hughes
  1. The note, with slight verbal changes, was presented Dec. 18.
  2. Post, p. 8.