This note was sent to me by the Foreign Office with the statement that
they only desire to meet your wishes and are prepared to conclude
matters as soon as you have either signified your approval or indicated
any modifications in the text of the note which you may desire.
[Enclosure—Translation]
Draft of Note To Be Sent by the French Minister
for Foreign Affairs (Poincaré) to
the American Ambassador (Herrick)
Mr. Ambassador: By your letter of December
18th last,10 Your Excellency was good enough to make
known the points which your Government would like to have defined in
view of the conclusion of the convention relative to the Mandate of
France in Syria and the Lebanon.
The Federal Government would like to receive the assurance that its
nationals, as well as itself, will benefit in these countries by the
most favorable treatment resulting not only from the Agreement
recently concluded between France and Italy, but by all other
agreements or conventions which may be concluded between the French
Government and other governments concerning Syria and the Lebanon.
The French Government willingly gives this assurance to the
Government of the United States of America.
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In the second place, the Federal Government desires that it should be
agreed that the extradition treaties concluded between the United
States and France should be applicable to the Syrian and Lebanon
territories. I have the honor to point out to Your Excellency that
Article 7 of the Mandate provides that: “while awaiting the
conclusion of special extradition conventions, the extradition
treaties in force between foreign Powers and the Mandatory shall be
applied in the territories of Syria and the Lebanon”. On this
account, the extradition treaties between the United States and
France are already applicable and would only cease to be so if the
Federal Government should desire to have substituted therefor a
convention applying especially to the mandated countries.
Lastly, the Federal Government expresses the desire that the Consular
Convention in force between the United States and France may also be
applicable in Syria and the Lebanon and especially those of its
provisions which refer to the immunities and privileges of consuls.
The French Government would very willingly introduce a clause on
this subject into the draft convention to be concluded with the
United States of America if, on account of the peculiar regime of
the mandated countries, the insertion of this clause in a convention
might not cause reactions, as regards a still undetermined number of
other states, whose bearing it is difficult to foresee. Therefore,
the French Government thinks it preferable to give in the present
letter to the Federal Government the assurance that it will see no
objection to the establishment, in any part of Syria and the Lebanon
where the Federal Government might deem it useful, of consuls,
vice-consuls and consular agents of the United States who will enjoy
the treatment accorded by international custom. It also gives the
assurance that as far as the privileges and immunities attached to
their duties are concerned, the consuls and vice-consuls of the
United States will benefit by all the provisions of the Franco
American Convention of 1853, it being understood that the said
consuls and vice-consuls shall be citizens of the United States.
The French Government having agreed, at the request of the Federal
Government, not to maintain in favor of consuls of both countries
the right stipulated in the Convention of 1853 to request the arrest
in the United States and in France of deserters from war and
merchant ships, it is understood, on the other hand, that this right
will not be exercised by the consuls of France with regard to Syrian
and Lebanon sailors in the United States.
I would be much obliged if Your Excellency would be good enough to
inform me if these assurances give satisfaction to the Federal
Government and allow it to proceed to the signature of the draft
convention drawn up on July 13, 1922, with the sole changes in
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drafting proposed by Your
Excellency and recalled in the enclosure herewith.11
Please accept, Mr. Ambassador, the assurances of my very high
consideration.
