856D.6176/494: Telegram
The Minister in the Netherlands (Gordon) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 25—3:35 p.m.]
32. Department’s 27, March 24, 6 p.m. I had an appointment for this morning with Van Gelderen who had been in London and there had discussed with Sir John Campbell8 the points raised in my note of March 15 presented to the Netherland Government pursuant to the Department’s 24, March 12, 1 p.m. and after further discussion of these points with him, I took occasion to present to him with emphasis the further views of our Government as received this morning in the Department’s latest telegram.
I have just seen the Foreign Minister and have discussed with him at length the points embodied in the Department’s latest telegram and have impressed upon him the serious concern with which the American Government regards this whole rubber question especially at this particular juncture when a new 5-year control plan is about to be adopted.
With regard to point 1 of the Department’s telegram under reference the Foreign Minister observed that he had only given me a preliminary expression of views at our interview last week (see my 30, March 23, 1 p.m.) which was not entirely tantamount to stating that certain of our suggestions were unobjectionable to the Netherlands Government. However, he did say that he appreciated our solicitude [Page 934] in the premises and that the points raised in my note of March 15 as well as those set forth in my note of today would be carefully studied in that light. Copy to London.
- Sir John Campbell, Chairman of the International Rubber Committee.↩