883.404/66
The Ambassador in the United Kingdom, ( Bingham ) to the Secretary of State
[Received December 21.]
Sir: I have the honor to refer to the Department’s instruction No. 1501 of November 27, 1936, authorizing the Embassy to inquire at the Foreign Office whether it is proposed to request the Egyptian Government, at the time of the proposed admission of that country into the League of Nations, to furnish appropriate guarantees or to give assurances with respect to religious liberties. The question was taken up with the Foreign Office in the sense of the Department’s instruction under reference, and the Embassy was given the following information with the request that it be kept strictly confidential.
The Foreign Office said that it had this question very much in [Page 27] mind and while the High Commissioner in Cairo had “been given a line to follow” in presenting the missionaries’ case, the matter was a delicate one and Sir Miles Lampson would have a fairly free hand as regards the details and the manner in which it should be taken up with the Egyptian Government. The Foreign Office, therefore, did not know whether, if the High Commissioner’s representations were successful, they would result in the giving of guarantees by the Egyptian Government at the time of the proposed admission of that country into the League of Nations, but the Foreign Office hoped that the Egyptian Government would see the wisdom of making a suitable declaration on the subject of religious liberties some time prior to its admission into the League of Nations. They suggested that it might be awkward for Egypt to be asked by the League what the situation was, and that it would be far more dignified for the Egyptian Government to make a purely voluntary statement.
The Foreign Office pointed out that there was always a danger of pressing a country like Egypt too much, which, if affronted, “might dig its toes in”, and therefore the matter was one which should be dealt with with the greatest tact and discretion.
At the end of the conversation, the Foreign Office again emphasized their request that their remarks be kept in the strictest confidence.
Respectfully yours,