611.5531/805: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Chargé in Belgium (Wilson)
60. Your 117, September 5, 1 p.m. We are going forward with our trade agreement preparations on the assumption that conditions arising from the war will not be such as to preclude the possibility of the conclusion of a mutually satisfactory agreement.
The war has not altered our ability to offer to Belgium increased facilities for Belgian imports into the United States. We here do not now know in what measure the war will affect our export trade with Belgium. We are assuming however that the Belgian Government will continue to be in a position to offer American trade adequate compensation for the concessions we will be prepared to make.
In view of the existing situation in Europe we feel that definite decision regarding the place where the definitive negotiations are to be held should be deferred until early October.