760F.62/615: Telegram
The Chargé in the United Kingdom (Johnson) to the Secretary of State
[Received August 29—9:05 a.m.]
831. My 829, August 27, 5 p.m.97 Referring to the démarche made by Germany at Moscow,98 Bucharest and Belgrade, Masaryk last night showed me two telegrams from Praha giving the substance of confidential reports received from the Czech Ministers at Bucharest and Moscow. These messages were essentially as follows:
The Rumanian Foreign Minister informed the Czech Minister that the German Minister, Fabricius, told him, acting on instructions from Berlin, that Germany does not wish war on account of Czechoslovakia but cannot tolerate much longer the ill-treatment of Germans by the Czechs and will help them with all available means. If France should intervene it would not be Germany that could be blamed for the consequences.
The German Legation in Belgrade is said to have told the same thing to Stoyadinovitch,99 leaving out the last part about France.
The German Ambassador in Moscow, according to information furnished to the Czech Minister by Litvinoff, made a similar démarche and told Litvinoff and Potemkin1 that in the event of the failure of Lord Runciman’s mission war seemed inevitable and Germany would not be responsible for it. Litvinoff is said to have advised the German Ambassador that Germany should leave Czechoslovakia alone; that Czechoslovakia would defend herself, aided by Russia in fulfillment of her obligations, and that even England would in the end be forced to intervene.
Masaryk who, needless to say, is under great strain, seemed very nervous and distracted and made no pretense of hiding his immense anxiety. He did say, however, that he still thought that there was a chance that a German attack might be averted and he thought that in spite of all the unfavorable indications pointing to such an intention on the part of Germany.