852.00/5081
The Secretary of State to the Mexican Ambassador (Castillo Nájera)
Excellency: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of Your Excellency’s note of April 6th, in which, by instruction of your Government, you amplify the terms of the note previously addressed to me under date of April 1st,63 with further exposition of the policy pursued by the Mexican Government in connection with the unhappy conflict which now afflicts the Spanish people.
[Page 277]You state that “the Mexican Government considers it to be its duty at this time to contribute all the means in its power in favor of world peace and, especially, to endeavor that an end be put to the armed contest which, for eight months past, has been causing the shedding of blood on Spanish soil”. You further state that without prejudging the position of the United States, the Government of Mexico “believes that, because of elementary sentiments of humanity and justice, the countries which fortunately enjoy peace abroad and security at home might be able to find a formula of collaboration to prevent the indefinite prolongation of the Spanish conflict”.
The policy of the Government of the United States of strict noninterference in the unfortunate conflict in Spain is, of course, well known to Your Excellency’s Government and I feel sure needs at this date no further elaboration. That policy has been enacted into law by the Congress of the United States, and with regard to it the Executive Branch of this Government has no discretionary power.
Your Excellency’s Government, I am sure, likewise bears in mind that these principles of non-interference in the domestic conflict in Spain are principles which have been formally subscribed to by twenty-seven other nations, of which many are European powers closely concerned in the tragic situation which has arisen in Spain both because of their geographic proximity as well as because of their intimate commercial and economic ties.
If, without deviating from this policy of non-interference, the moral influence of the United States Government can be exerted in support of impartial steps looking towards a more humane conduct of the conflict, the Government of the United States would not only give sympathetic consideration to such steps as might be suggested, but in so doing would thereby give expression to feelings which have deeply moved the American people. However, in accordance with the traditional policy of the Government of the United States in such cases, this Government would in such event consider it necessary to determine for itself whether such steps might afford practicable means of making known, wholly independently of or concurrently with any joint action by any other Governments, its earnest interest in any impartial program designed to render more humane the conflict which has arisen.
I have felt it desirable to make known to Your Excellency thus frankly the policy which has been pursued and which will be pursued by the Government of the United States, in view of Your Excellency’s courtesy in making known to the Government of the United States the point of view of and the policy pursued by the Government of Mexico in connection with the situation which has arisen in Spain.
Accept [etc.]
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