711.008 North Pacific/302: Telegram
The Ambassador in Japan ( Grew ) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 12—11:07 a.m.]
169. Our 162, March 11, noon, Alaska salmon fisheries.
1. The Foreign Office has just presented to us a new redraft of the press communiqué as follows and in view of the advantages of release for Sunday morning papers we received it ad referendum:
“As a result of discussions between the American Government and the Government of Japan in regard to the salmon fishing activities of Japanese nationals in the offshore waters of Alaska, especially in the Bristol Bay area, reported during the past fishing season, the Japanese Government has given, without prejudice to the question of rights under international law, assurances as follows: (1) that the Japanese Government is suspending the 3-year salmon fishing survey which has been in progress since 1936 in waters of Bristol Bay, (2) that inasmuch as it has been the practice in the past not to issue licenses to those vessels which desired to proceed to the Bristol Bay area for the purpose of salmon fishing the Japanese Government will on its own initiative continue the said practice for the time being and that in order to make effective this assurance the Japanese Government is prepared to take if and when conclusive evidence is presented that any Japanese vessels, which are present in the waters in question to engage in crab fishing or in production of fish meal, [Page 180] operate in salmon fishery on a commercial scale, a necessary and proper measure to cause such operations to be discontinued.
The American Government appreciates these assurances which the Japanese Government has given in the spirit of collaboration in the efforts of the American Government to conserve and protect the Alaskan salmon fishery resources and is gratified that discussions have been conducted by the two Governments concerned in a friendly manner.
The assurances given by the Japanese Government are regarded as regulating the situation until such time as the problems involved may call for, and circumstances may render practicable, the taking of other measures.”
2. The redraft shown to us on March 9 was as follows:
“As a result of discussions carried on in a friendly manner between the American Government and the Government of Japan in regard to the salmon fishing activities of Japanese nationals in the offshore waters of Alaska, especially in the Bristol Bay area, reported during the past fishing season the Japanese Government has given, without prejudice to the question of rights under international law, assurances as follows: (1) that the Japanese Government is suspending the 3-year salmon fishing survey which has been in progress since 1936 in waters of Bristol Say, (2) that inasmuch as the salmon fishing by Japanese vessels is not permitted without licenses from the Japanese Government, the Japanese Government will refrain for the time being from issuing licenses to fish for salmon in Bristol Bay area and that in order to make effective this assurance the Japanese Government is prepared to take, if and when conclusive evidence is presented that any Japanese vessels, which are present in the waters in question to engage in crab fishing or in production of fish meal, operate in salmon fishery on a commercial scale, a necessary and proper measure to prevent such operations.”
3. We informed the Foreign Office this afternoon of the substance of the Department’s 84, March 11, 5 p.m., in order to support our contention that any substantial departure from the Department’s original draft may not have the effect of allaying public feeling in the United States. The Foreign Office stated categorically that the assurances and undertakings which it has given to us confidentially would not be modified by reason of omission of any feature thereof from the press announcement and the hope was expressed that the Department would appreciate the fact that Japanese public opinion would become aroused if it had reason to believe that the Japanese Government had made a surrender of substantial Japanese rights.
4. If the Japanese counter-draft is acceptable to our Government and the Department desires to issue it to the press for release in Sunday morning’s papers, it will be necessary for us to receive word to that effect before 11:30 o’clock Sunday morning Tokyo time so that we may inform the Foreign Office which intends to release the communiqué [Page 181] (omitting the last two sentences thereof) in Japan simultaneously with release in the United States. The hour mentioned would be the last possible to catch the Sunday afternoon papers here. In that case I suggest that the Department send me by radio triple priority this evening the single uncoded word “release”.
5. In the event that the Department finds the counter-draft unacceptable, I would appreciate word to that effect in order that I may proceed along the lines of paragraph 3 of my 162.