611.4131/1722
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Secretary of State
The British Ambassador called on his own request.…
The Ambassador then said that he called to discuss generally the trade negotiations between our two Governments, adding that it would hardly be desirable for us to undertake a discussion of details since that had best be left to the experts. He expressed the hope that his Government, after the fullest consideration by the Cabinet last week, had made far-reaching proposals and concessions and that he hoped that we would now cooperate in order to terminate the negotiations at the earliest possible date, without any elaborate differences to be further thrashed out. I replied to the Ambassador that we ourselves were mindful of the importance and the urgency for an early agreement; that to that end it is the policy of my Government at this stage to refrain from insisting on many requests for concessions, which the British Government thus far has not seen [Page 50] fit to grant, but only to make such further requests as we feel absolutely and unconditionally obliged to make, confining them to as few concrete instances as possible. I went on to emphasize the absolute necessity for reasonable agricultural concessions by the British Government. I stated that we appreciated the spirit in which the British had dealt with our requests up to a certain point, but that we were simply obliged to bring a number of unfulfilled requests further to the attention of his Government, and that we would omit every request at all consistent and possible to omit in the interest of an early agreement.