Foreign Relations of the United States Diplomatic Papers, 1936, General, British Commonwealth, Volume I

863.01/385: Telegram

The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Bingham) to the Secretary of State

London, July 13, 1936—7 p.m.
[Received July 13—3:15 p.m.]

345. An official of the Foreign Office in conversation this afternoon laid considerable emphasis on the magnitude of the concessions made by Hitler in reaching an agreement with Austria and said that while it was too early to formulate a clear judgment on the agreement it was obvious Hitler must have received some very substantial quid pro quo, that for this reason in spite of the fact that the agreement on its face would appear to be a highly desirable achievement as a step toward stabilization in Central Europe, the implications which may be imputed to the concessions received by Germany naturally cause concern.

Referring to the French notification that their Mediterranean mutual assistance accord⁷² will not be in effect after July 15 (Paris telegram 593, July 11, 1 p.m.⁷³) and to the attitude adopted by Italy toward these understandings the Foreign Office emphasized the unilateral nature of the declarations made by Eden in the Commons on June 18, repeated at Geneva on July 1, and observed that the British Government was not yet in the position where it could be dictated to; that the British declarations would be withdrawn by the British Government in its own time.⁷⁴

With reference to the proposed meeting at Brussels the Foreign Office observed that Turkish [Italian?] authorities for internal political reasons prefer a five-power meeting with Germany attending^74a while the French likewise strongly influenced by internal political considerations prefer a four-power meeting, and that before the Brussels meeting can have any hope of success these differences of view must be ironed out and a great deal of preparatory work accomplished.

Copies by mail to Paris, Berlin, Rome, Vienna.

Bingham

72. See British Cmd. 5072, Ethiopia No. 2 (1936): Dispute between Ethiopia and Italy, Correspondence in connexion with the application of Article 16 of the Covenant of the League of Nations, January 1936.
73. Vol. iii, p. 187.
74. Mr. Eden announced the lapse of the Anglo-French Mediterranean mutual assistance agreement in the House of Commons on July 15 and made a similar announcement on July 27 with respect to Greece, Turkey, and Yugoslavia.
75. Invitations to a conference of Locarno Powers, Germany excepted, were issued on July 8 by the Belgian Prime Minister; the conference was not held, Italy objecting to a meeting from which Germany would be absent.