832.00 Nazi/15: Telegram
The Ambassador in Brazil (Caffery) to the Secretary of State
[Received 9:45 p.m.]
42. My telegram No. 40. Aranha18 came this afternoon from Petropolis where he as well as President Vargas are now staying, to say that the President told him to ask me to request the Department to inform President Roosevelt that he had received a visit from the German Ambassador on Friday when Herr Bitter protested vigorously against the arrest of Dorsch and repeated what he said to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (my telegram No. 40). Ritter adopted an almost threatening attitude in regard to the recent measures taken against the Nazis here and remarked that the “persecutions” (as he called them) were even unlawful in view of the fact that the pertinent Brazilian law referred specifically to Brazilian political party and not foreign; he contended warmly that the German Nazi Party should be allowed to function here. The President replied sharply that he would not tolerate Nazi activities in Brazil. The Ambassador then changed his tone and pleaded as a friend of Brazil. The President then told him that he should address his complaints in writing and shortly thereafter terminated the interview. Aranha says that when the complaints are received they will be categorically turned down. Yesterday [Page 410] the German Ambassador went to see the Minister of Finance and told him that his Government has changed its point of view and is now willing to assure the Brazilian Government that there will be no further subsidies by the German Export Trade Organization (mentioned frequently in recent telegrams in connection with compensation mark trading). This matter will be taken up again with the German Embassy immediately after carnival. Aranha remarked that the German authorities have granted no licenses for the importation of Brazilian goods during the past 12 days on account of recent (frequently reported on) changes in the value of the compensation mark effected by the Bank of Brazil.
Aranha says that he will be appointed Minister for Foreign Affairs around the end of this week and Pimentel Brandão will go to Washington as Ambassador.
- Oswaldo Aranha, Brazilian Ambassador to the United States, had left Washington for Brazil in December 1937.↩