724.3415/3953: Telegram
The Ambassador in Great Britain (Bingham) to the Secretary of State
[Received July 25—10 a.m.]
432. Department’s 313, July 24, 7 p.m.3 The Foreign Office states that a communication was made yesterday to the League of Nations signifying that the British Government are now prepared to enforce a complete suspension of arms exports to Bolivia and Paraguay and that they will do this as soon as the original governments concerned [Page 275] are willing to put the embargo into force. Under this action the British will stop immediately all licenses for export of arms to Bolivia and Paraguay whether under contracts existing prior to the date of the embargo or not. According to the Foreign Office the British have delayed in making this communication to the League until they had received assurance from the Italian Government that they likewise would enter the embargo plan. The British Chargé d’Affaires in Washington has been instructed to advise the Department fully of the attitude and intentions of the British Government in this matter.
The Foreign Office hopes that they will be notified within a very few days by the League of Nations of the concurrence of other interested countries notably Belgium and Czechoslovakia. The impression was received however that even if Belgium and Czechoslovakia should refuse to concur the British Government nevertheless will enforce the embargo on its part.
- Not printed; it requested that a reply to Department’s No. 301, July 14, 3 p.m., be expedited.↩