800.51W89 Italy/222
Memorandum by the Acting Secretary of State
The Italian Ambassador discussed at some length the Department’s reply to the Italian note transmitting $1,000,000 in acknowledgment of the Italian debt, due the United States. He expressed regret that the Department had found it necessary to mention figures. He said that, so far as the Italian Government was concerned, it was a question of the payment of a round sum and also the desirability of avoiding a payment of 10%, which Mr. Moley had asked them to avoid. The payment of $2,000,000 would have been beyond Italy’s capacity to pay. The payment of a million and a half would have looked somewhat curious, so that his Government decided upon the figure of one million.
The Ambassador then referred to our offer to discuss the entire debt question with him and said he would be glad to know when this would be convenient. He assumed that we would want to open first such a debt discussion with the British. I said that we had not felt it necessary to begin with the British, that Sir Ronald Lindsay had himself suggested the possibility of the month of September. On the other hand, I had seen from the press that the British were considering a date at the end of July. I asked whether a date in the first part of August would be agreeable to him. The Ambassador replied that, so far as he was concerned, it would be agreeable, but he would have to communicate with his Government before he fixed the date.