Foreign Relations of the United States Diplomatic Papers, 1935, The Far East, Volume III

893.6363 Manchuria/165: Telegram

The Ambassador in Japan (Grew) to the Secretary of State

Tokyo, April 11, 1935—6 p.m.
[Received April 11—9:45 a.m.]

81. Embassy’s 77, April 10, 7 p.m., paragraph 5.

1. Except for the differences in the summation of our arguments in the introductions of the aide-mémoire and the use of the words “American Government”, instead of “British Government”, the aide-mémoire received by this Embassy last night on the subject of the oil monopoly in Manchuria does not differ in any essential respect from that received by the British Embassy on March 25, the gist of which was transmitted to the Department via Shanghai in the Embassy’s No. 66, March 28, 10 a.m. Exactly the same arguments are employed and even the wording appears to be the same.

2. Amau⁸⁵ stated today to the foreign press correspondents that the reply to the American representations would not be published in Japan.

3. The Netherlands Minister has not yet received the reply to his representations.

4. I see no reason to alter the suggestions contained in paragraph 2 of my 69, March 29, 11 a.m. and I believe that it would be advisable for the American Government to take action similar to that being taken by the British Government, as outlined in my 77, April 10, 7 p.m., at an early moment in order that the action of the two Governments may be as nearly concurrent as possible.

5. The Embassy is informed that the next move by the oil companies will be to claim damages for the invalidation of their investments and loss of their business in Manchuria and they hope that these claims can be presented to Japanese rather than to the Manchukuo Government. In our final representations, therefore, it would appear to be desirable to emphasize the responsibility of the Japanese Government in this connection.

To Peiping by mail.

Grew

85. Eiji Amau, director of the Information and Intelligence Bureau, Japanese Foreign Office.