852.00/3886: Telegram
The Ambassador in France (Bullitt) to the Acting Secretary of State
[Received November 25—8:30 p.m.]
1149. The French Government has become extremely apprehensive with regard to the possibility of general European war growing out [Page 575] of the Spanish conflict. The Council of Ministers decided this afternoon to approach the British Government with a proposal that France and England unitedly should bring the utmost pressure on the Soviet Government on the one hand and the German and Italian Governments on the other to attempt to compel them to stop the incognito war which they are waging against each other in Spain.
The French Government is convinced that the Soviet Government desires to push the conflict to the bitter end on the theory that even though in the first instance the Soviet Government would suffer a defeat through the overthrowing of the Madrid and Barcelona Governments by Italian and German troops enlisted in Franco’s army, the final result would be an attempt by the Germans to establish a new status in Spanish Morocco and an attempt by the Italians to maintain possession of the Balearic Islands which would result in war between Germany and Italy on one side and France and England on the other. This the Soviet Government anticipates would lead to eventual Bolshevization of the whole of Europe.
The Italian Ambassador this evening expressed to me his conviction that it would be impossible for the Italian Government at this time to cease to support Franco even if the Soviet Government should cease to support the Madrid and Barcelona Governments, Franco’s effectives being clearly insufficient to enable him to conquer the whole of Spain.
The French Government has reason to believe that the German-Japanese pact11 with annex published today in Berlin is accompanied by certain unpublished agreements which will lead to close cooperation between the German and Japanese Governments in preparation of armaments, but that it does not contain any specific pledge on the part of either to go to war at once if the other should become involved in war with the Soviet Union.
Fear of general European war resulting from the Spanish conflict has increased enormously in Paris during the past 24 hours.
- See vol. i, pp. 390 ff.↩