500.A15a3/1651: Telegram
The Consul at Geneva (Gilbert) to the Secretary of State
[Received 5:20 p.m.]
231. Embassy Rome 198, October 9 to Department.37 Before he left Paris Marriner asked me to inquire of Rosso respecting Rosso’s statement that Rome had received no report from Paris to the memorandum referred to in the telegram.
[Page 436]I made this inquiry of Massigli who stated that some misunderstanding was apparent, that the Italian memorandum was on the “negative” side and that the French had been promised a memorandum on the “positive” side which they were awaiting before sending an answer to the Italians. I conveyed this information to Marriner.
Massigli and Rosso are both here. It is apparent that Massigli spoke to Rosso about this for Rosso called on me today and handed me the following memorandum which he asked me to transmit to the Department:
The memorandum containing a new French proposition for a naval agreement was received in Rome about the end of August. Consultations took place between Rome and London on the subject and the Italians were informed that the British Government did not see their way to accepting an agreement unless the solution was found within the frame of the Basis of Agreement of March 1st.
About the middle of September Craigie came to Geneva to discuss the matter with Rosso. They tried to find out a solution which could give a certain amount of satisfaction to the French, while the general lines of the Basis of Agreement should be maintained.
They finally agreed to submit and to recommend to their respective Governments for approval a proposal to the effect that the Basis of Agreement should apply to a period of 5 years instead of 6 years, which was thought to represent a fair compromise between the Anglo-Italian and the French points of view.
At the same time it was agreed that the Italians would answer to the French memorandum explaining that the new French proposal was unacceptable, but adding that the Italian Government were ready to continue the negotiation on the basis of agreement reached on March 1st last with a view to finding a compromise.
An Italian memorandum to that effect was handed to Massigli about the end of September.
In the first days of October the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Rome was asked by the British Embassy to let them know whether the Italian Government was in a position to agree with the suggestion made by Craigie and Rosso, following their talk in Geneva. The Italians were told that the Foreign Office in London wanted to be sure that Lord Reading38—who was on his way to Paris—could talk the matter over with the French. The Italian answer was that, should the new proposal be accepted by France, Italy would also agree.
It seems that when in Paris Lord Reading only mentioned the thing in a general way but that he did not press it, maybe because he felt that Mr. Laval was not ready to look into it in a favorable way.
[Page 437]Not being possessed of the background of this question I can not well undertake to discuss such matters here. If however the Department has any specific questions which they would like to have me address to Massigli, Rosso or the British on this subject I will be pleased to solicit written replies and to transmit them by telegraph if desired.