500.A15A4 Air Armaments/27: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Acting Chairman of the American Delegation (Gibson)
34. Your 31, February 16, 12 p.m. Following from War Department for General Simonds:
“In response to your request the War Department has made a study as to the effect on national defense of (1) prohibition of aerial bombing, (2) abolition of bombardment aviation, (3) internationalization of civil aviation. All of these proposals are relatively detrimental to our national defense. None of them is effective as a measure for disarmament or sound as a basis for limitation of armaments. They serve only to shift the factors of air power from their present status to the advantage of certain nations and to the disadvantage of the United States. Our pacific attitude towards the world, our standard of national ethics and our inherent strength in aviation make total abolition of military and naval aviation, rigidly enforced, the most acceptable proposal, and the only one embodying true disarmament. The studies requested are being forwarded by mail.”