711.94/2625
Memorandum of Comment by the Ambassador in Japan (Grew), November 12, 1941
My conversation with Mr. Kase casts doubt as to the credibility of the alleged message which was passed on to me from the Foreign Minister by a prominent Japanese on November 7, as reported in my telegram 1769, November 7, 11 p.m., paragraph numbered one.50 In view of my conversation today with Mr. Kase, it is possible that the so-called message had been conveyed to me by my informant in somewhat unclear and misleading form. At the time of its delivery it had struck me as somewhat surprising, but as I had not yet at that time had my first real interview with the Foreign Minister I had no grounds on which to question its accuracy. Although it is possible that the alleged message from my informant accurately reflected the Minister’s remarks, which were to be conveyed to me in a purely personal fashion and were not designed to form a part of the official record, even this interpretation is subject to doubt. While it would appear obvious that a continuation of the talks is greatly to be preferred to a complete break-down, nonetheless for the conversations to drag on for a considerable time with no definite progress being made in reconciling the respective positions of the two Governments may well accelerate the creation of the dangerous situation referred to in my various reports of recent months, particularly in my 1736, November 3, 3 p.m. Although I entirely realize that it is still up to Japan to provide the initiative to make possible such progress in the conversations, I do not feel in a position to state whether as asserted by the Japanese Government the proposals which were submitted on November 7 to the Secretary constitute the maximum Japanese concessions.