Foreign Relations of the United States Diplomatic Papers, 1939, The Far East; The Near East and Africa, Volume IV

390D.11/186: Telegram

The Ambassador in Turkey (MacMurray) to the Secretary of State

Istanbul, December 29, 1939—2 p.m.
[Received 7:48 p.m.]

75. My telegram No. 147, November 21, 5 p.m.

1. Turks desire that agreement be in the form of a treaty. The Minister of the Interior takes the position that this is necessary for administrative purposes. Has the Department any objection?

2. For the Department’s information, while the Foreign Office is insisting that its counterproposals (inclosed in my despatch No. 1277, November 23, 1939) be used as the basis of discussions, they appear disposed to make the changes necessary to bring it into substantive accord with the draft of exchange of notes worked out in Washington.¹⁵

MacMurray

15. See enclosures to instruction No. 279, July 21, 1938, to the Ambassador in Turkey, Foreign Relations, 1938, vol. ii, p. 1116.