893.515/1378
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Chief of the Division of Far Eastern Affairs (Hamilton)
The French Ambassador called and referred to his conversation with me on March 4 in regard to the currency and exchange situation in north China. The Ambassador said that his Government had decided to make representations at Tokyo. In regard to the attitude of French banks in north China and the question whether his Government would leave to those banks decision with regard to the attitude they should take toward the new exchange regulations, the Ambassador said that his Government upon further consideration of the matter had come to the conclusion that it was very important in this situation that the foreign banks in north China take a common position and adopt a common attitude; that in as much as the British Government had urged British banks not to cooperate with the Peiping “Federal Reserve Bank”, it seemed advisable to his Government that French banks be similarly advised.
I told the Ambassador that I was very glad that he had called; that I was on the point of telephoning the French Embassy in regard to American banks in north China and the attitude they should take; that a representative of the American banks had called at the Department to discuss the situation; and that we had informed this representative that it seemed desirable to us that the various foreign banks in north China, especially the American, British and French banks, keep in line with each other and maintain a common front in resistance to the trade and exchange restrictions announced by the Japanese controlled authorities. I said that our attitude in the matter seemed in general to be substantially the same as the attitude of the French Government which he had just been so good as to communicate to me. I said that we had pointed out to the representative of the American banks that while we of course realized that the banks had responsibilities of their own and had to protect their own interests, action by American banks toward maintaining a solid front against the Japanese would be welcomed by this Government.