835.5151/722: Telegram

The Consul at Buenos Aires (Ravndal) to the Secretary of State

For Duggan. The Chief of the Argentine Exchange Control Office informed me privately today that the Argentine authorities will reply [Page 246] to the Embassy’s note of February 3 that it cannot grant more official exchange merchandise imports from the United States but in view of the representations of United States “will not for the time being reduce the present scale of allotments for such imports[”]. Allegedly it is doing this “much” in the hope that the United States will soon initiate trade agreement negotiations with Argentina. If such negotiations are not proposed by the United States within a reasonable time allegedly less official exchange than at present will be granted. Letter follows.

Ravndal