611.3131/176
The Minister in Venezuela (Nicholson) to the Secretary of
State
No. 944
Caracas, February 25, 1938.
[Received March
5.]
Sir: I have the honor to confirm my telegram
no. 18 of February 25, 1938, 5 p.m., and to enclose a copy with English
translation of the Memorandum from the Minister of Hacienda referred to
therein. Dr. Ramon Eduardo Tello, who delivered the Memorandum to the
Legation, stated that the Venezuelan Government would have no objection
to the publication of the second announcement in Washington at the
earliest possible moment.
Respectfully yours,
[Enclosure—Translation]
The Venezuelan Ministry of
Hacienda to the American
Legation
Memorandum
In the memorandum5 of the Legation of the United States of America,
dated the fourth instant, it is stated anew that the criterion which
should regulate the concessions of advantages is the consideration
[Page 961]
of whether a country
is the principal supplier in a category of products imported by the
other country. It is obvious that such a criterion, while it may be
desirable to the United States by reason of its enormous economic
development which makes of it the principal supplier of many of the
articles which we import, is very disadvantageous for a country of
modest economic development like Venezuela which cannot aspire to
the position of chief supplier of the American market in any of the
products which make up its exportation.
The admission of this criterion would regularize the situation
adverse to Venezuela and would make impossible the obtaining of any
advantage needed for Venezuelan products in compensation for the
advantages which would be granted to the majority of the American
products.
In the preliminary conversations only the general provisions of the
agreement were discussed, but when any reference was made to the
lists of products which would be annexed to articles I and II of the
draft, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed the view that the
requests for advantages by the one and the other country should be
based on the approximate calculations of the equivalents of values
represented by those advantages, so that there might be equality and
effective reciprocity in the concessions granted. This consideration
of the equivalence of the advantages was incorporated in articles I
and II of the draft agreement presented by the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs.
With respect to the list of products on which the American Government
hopes for concessions, the list will not be published by the
Government of Venezuela until the latter has reached entire
agreement with the Government of the United States on the
concessions to grant.
Caracas, February 25,
1938.
