711.682 (1928)/5¼: Telegram

The Minister in Greece ( Skinner ) to the Secretary of State

17. Draft treaty commerce submitted today to Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Skinner

[The outcome of these negotiations is explained in instruction No. 240, November 15, 1935, to the Minister in Greece (711.689 Entry, Residence and Establishment/1) as follows: [Page 25]

“In his despatch No. 619, of June 26, 1928, Mr. Skinner informed the Department of the views of the Chief of the Treaty Section of the Foreign Office on the draft, and requested further instructions of the Department in the light of these views. By despatch No. 630, of July 6, 1928, Mr. Skinner supplied the Department with further points relating to the views of the Greek Government with respect to the draft treaty.

“Consideration of the Greek Government’s views, by the various interested departments of the Government of the United States was not completed until early in 1932, at which time a draft instruction, in reply to Mr. Skinner’s despatches No. 619 and No. 630 was prepared. However, before this instruction could be dispatched to the Legation, Greek commercial policy had been revised under the stress of existing conditions in favor of controlled imports and exports. The Department therefore concluded that the time was not auspicious for the continuance of the negotiations looking to the conclusion of the treaty under consideration.

“Other controlling factors in this decision were the existence of the exchange of notes between the United States and Greece, of December 9, 1924, according mutual unconditional most-favored-nation treatment in customs matters, but which could be cancelled on one month’s notice, and the fact that the Consular Convention of 1902 was still in force. Furthermore, although no treaty was in. existence governing matters of establishment and residence, it appeared that Greece was according most-favored-nation treatment to the United States in this respect as well as in customs matters.”

Despatches No. 619 and No. 630, mentioned above, are not printed.]