861.77 Chinese Eastern/625: Telegram
The Minister in Austria (Washburn) to the Secretary of State
[Received 9:05 p.m.]
42. Referring to your circular telegrams of December 5, 3 p.m. and 4 p.m.82
(1) On December 4 the Secretary General of the Austrian Foreign Office referred to the Moscow reaction to your action as “extraordinary”. Today he informed me of his Government’s opinion that the United States Government’s action and suggestions were entirely correct and in harmony with the Paris Pact, which was signed by China, Russia, and the United States.
(2) Inasmuch as Soviet Acting Foreign Commissar Litvinoff has characterized the Franco-American démarche as “unfriendly” and, as reported by the Austrian press, has stated publicly that the new Austrian Government has declared it is ready to maintain the existing Austro-Soviet economic relations (this, reading between the lines, is here interpreted to be a warning), Austria as a weak power feels it must refrain from publicly taking a stand, since commercial relations with Russia are important. I think also, though this is secondary, it is felt here that, just at the moment of reaching a [Page 402] constitutional compromise with the Socialists, possible internal complications should be avoided.
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(4) As early next week as is possible, there will be handed to me a note embodying the sense of paragraph (1) and also perhaps paragraph (2). The acute constitutional crisis which culminated this week here has subordinated everything else. …
- Neither printed.↩