740.00/774: Telegram
The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Kennedy) to the Secretary of State
[Received April 11—5:55 p.m.]
462. My 459, April 10, 9 p.m.90 I have just seen Halifax. The Prime Minister on Thursday will strongly state that if Italy touches Greece in any manner, England will fight. They are attempting by cable to get Turkey interested in fighting if either Italy touches Greece or Germany touches Rumania and they hope to have a favorable reply before Thursday with an agreement to fight at least for Greece. The Foreign Office is also urging Turkey to enter into a reciprocal agreement with Great Britain91 on the ground that, in the event of war between Great Britain and the dictators, and if Great Britain and France are beaten, Turkey’s number is up. They are also urging Turkey to use her influence with the Bulgarians to come into a like agreement. Halifax heard this morning that Rumania proposes to fight if she is attacked. This comes from Tilea, the Rumanian Minister, who may or may not have it authoritatively.
In the meantime the Government is urging Beck to work as fast as he can with the Rumanians in order to get their position stated. Halifax saw Maisky92 this morning and still completely distrusts him. He found Maisky cynical about the whole situation and rather of the opinion that the fat is in the fire as far as everybody is concerned with Russia sitting on the sidelines. Halifax hesitates to tell Maisky very much, because he is convinced that what he tells him is given over to the enemies.
I asked Halifax if there were any probability of postponing the visit of the King and Queen to America.93 He said he was firmly of the opinion that they should go because if the King had to declare war, he could declare it in Canada as well as in England, so I judge that, unless there is an absolute war situation, they propose to send the King and Queen. I thought the President might be interested in this.
I found Halifax strangely optimistic with the reservation that “this may all change before nightfall”. He told me today that he does not expect war. He said he hesitates always to tell me this because he feels I think he is “burying his head in the sand” and he admits that [Page 126] up to date he has been a little bit wrong. I do not know whether their judgment is based on facts that do not come to our attention or on Mussolini’s notes to England regarding the Albanian situation, but he is convinced that Mussolini does not want to go to war with England and the English intend to ask Mussolini very soon, to test his attitude, why the Italians are not withdrawn from Spain, now that the war is over.
They are moving their soldiers out of Palestine back to Egypt to help make the Egyptians feel better and keep that situation a little more settled and he added smilingly to make more trouble for Malcolm MacDonald95 in Palestine.
The Government here may be all wrong again, but Mussolini’s attitude as expressed to the Government over the Albanian matter has not increased their concern. It has rather made them feel that the situation is not as hopeless as everybody else seems to think it is.
- Not printed.↩
- Treaty of mutual assistance between the United Kingdom, France, and Turkey, signed at Angora, October 19, 1939, League of Nations Treaty Series, vol. cc, p. 167.↩
- Ivan Maisky, Soviet Ambassador in the United Kingdom.↩
- King George VI and Queen Elizabeth left England May 6, 1939, for a tour through Canada. They included a short visit to the United States and returned June 22, 1939.↩
- British Secretary of State for the Colonies.↩