800.51 W 89Czechoslovakia/104: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Minister in Czechoslovakia (Einstein)
29. Department’s July 16, 5 p.m. On July 20 the following informal memorandum was left at Department by Czechoslovak Chargé:11
“The Czechoslovak Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Eduard Beneš, thanks Secretary of the Treasury Mellon, as the chairman of the World War Foreign Debt Commission, for his communication.
The Czechoslovak Government is desirous of entering negotiations to cover the entire debt, and at the same time to verify any part thereof not yet admitted to be due, so that the final settlement would cover the entire debt. It is prepared to commence negotiations upon the settlement of the debt question with the United States of Belgium, France, and Italy. A notification as to whether or not such a time would be acceptable is therefore requested.
An official reply to the note of the United States Government will be dispatched about the coming Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest.”
Today an informal memorandum was handed the Czechoslovak Chargé stating that as far as a settlement with this Government is concerned there is no connection between the indebtedness of Belgium, France, Italy, and Czechoslovakia to the United States, and that for that reason it would not be acceptable if negotiations looking to the funding of Czechoslovakia’s indebtedness to the United States were not commenced until indebtedness of the other three Governments to the United States had been settled. On the contrary it was stated that commission to negotiate settlement of indebtedness of Czechoslovakia should, as indicated in the Chargé’s conversation with Mr. Richardson on July 6, 1925, come to Washington in very near future, the earnest hope being expressed that initiation of negotiations at Washington would take place not later than first week in September.
- Memorandum not paraphrased.↩