611.3531/175
The Chargé in Argentina (White) to the Secretary of State
[Received August 28.]
Sir: I have the honor to refer to the memorandum of the conversation between the Acting Secretary of State and the Argentine Ambassador, as reported in the memorandum of July 69 attached to Confidential Instruction No. 729 of July 27.10
In this there occurs the following passage:
“I gathered that there was a veiled threat, although the Ambassador did not convey it as such, that if there were no prospects of trade negotiations with the United States, the United States would suffer the consequences.”
Ever since I have been in this country I have noticed the almost instinctive tendency of Argentines—not necessarily of officials—to endeavor to play the United States off against Great Britain, and vice versa, as such a competitive spirit leads to the comforting sensation that foreign countries are falling over each other in their endeavor to secure Argentine trade. Possibly deriving from this tendency is a sentiment that the present balance of trade in favor of the United States can be used as a club to extort favors for Argentine exports. Presumably Dr. Espil is too well aware of the imperviousness of agricultural interests in the United States to arguments of this nature to have made any threat on his own initiative. But I can quite imagine that Dr. Saavedra Lamas11 might have sent instructions along such lines, with a view to obtaining reactions from Washington that might be of service in his negotiations with Great Britain or Italy.
When the idea of clubbing the United States into reciprocity arises, measures against the American automobile trade are the first to suggest themselves. Here, however, the difficulty occurs that there are no other cars so suitable for Argentine “camp” (i. e. rural) work as those from the United States. So that endeavors to injure this branch of American trade would give little satisfaction to the Argentine automobile public.
In connection with the foregoing, I may refer to the Department’s telegraphic instruction No. 50 of July 5, 6 p.m.,10 in which it is stated that the Argentine Ambassador had been instructed by his Government to inquire whether the reclassification of automobiles in [Page 651] the Argentine tariff now sought by the British Government would prejudice American autos, and I may also refer to this Embassy’s despatch No. 2170 of July 28,12 page 2, confidential section, in which it was stated that the Commission negotiating for the tariff clauses of the Roca Agreement proposed to change the basis of valuation of automobiles so as to favor cars with small cylinder space.
The informant to whom I am indebted for the information contained in this confidential section on page 2 of despatch No. 2170 of July 28 told me a day or so ago that a fresh attempt had been made by the British to obtain advantages in the automobile field in the course of the tariff discussions connected with the Roca agreement. He stated to me that the British had threatened to abandon the whole Roca agreement unless valuations upon imported cars should in future be effected on the basis of weight, to the end that American cars, being heavier than the British models, might pay a higher duty. My informant stated that such an arrangement, if put into effect, would, however, also in certain cases create unjust discrimination between different types of British cars. I told him I felt sure that the threat to rescind the Roca agreement on this ground was a bluff as the British would hardly spurn the Roca agreement at this late stage on such a pretext.
Enclosed herewith is further press comment12 in regard to negotiations for commercial agreements between Argentina and various Powers.
Respectfully yours,