Office of the Historian

741.94/111: Telegram

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

Tokyo, June 23, 1937—5 p.m.
[Received June 23—9:25 a.m.]

165. 1. In a conversation this morning with Dooman, Yoshizawa28 confirmed the accuracy of a statement contained in the Domei despatch from London published in the papers yesterday to the effect that the Japanese Ambassador at London has been authorized to open negotiations with the British Government looking toward the conclusion of a political agreement.

2. Yoshizawa stated that Yoshida, following informal conversations with Cadogan and later with Eden, had submitted to Tokyo an outline of an agreement which in Yoshida’s opinion might be acceptable to the two Governments concerned, and that the Japanese Government had authorized Yoshida to lay the outline before the British Government as a basis for negotiations. He emphasized that the difference between Yoshida’s previous conversations and the forthcoming conversations is that the latter will be conducted with the “official cognizance of the Japanese Government”.

3. As Yoshizawa stated that the Domei report could be accepted as “a substantially accurate estimate” of the scope of the forthcoming negotiations at London, it is briefly summarized as follows:

(a)
The Japanese Government will emphasize the adjustment of trade relations (presumably this refers to desire of Japanese for removal of quotas on Japanese imports into British Colonies and assurance that special restrictions will not be imposed upon Japanese goods entering British markets);
(b)
Possibility of declaration by Japan that “it has no territorial ambitions in China and is ready to respect British vested interests in that country”.

4. Assuming that the press report is substantially accurate it would seem that declarations contemplated by the Japanese Government is an exchange of a Japanese declaration to refrain from molesting British interests in China for a British assurance to refrain from discriminating against Japanese goods in British markets including probably Dominion markets. It seems to me that it would be a hard and probably technically difficult bargain for the British to accept notwithstanding the importance to them of their interests in China.

5. Another press despatch on the same subject refers to the possibility that the British Government without recognizing Manchukuo [Page 116] would deal with it as a fait accompli and would recognize the Japanese position in North China. I do not give credence to that report.

Repeated to Peiping.

Grew
  1. Seijiro Yoshizawa, Director of the American Affairs Bureau, Japanese Foreign Office.↩