859B.01/140

Memorandum of Conversation, by the Secretary of State

The Minister of Canada16 came in at my request. I proceeded to review the course of the relations of this Government, and to a certain extent of the British Government, with Greenland and the Danish sovereignty over it. I called attention to the agreement of this Government with Denmark when it purchased the Danish West Indies to the effect that it recognized the sovereignty of Denmark over Greenland. I then referred to the action of the British Government, when requested to do likewise, in imposing a condition that Great Britain was to be notified by Denmark in the event Denmark should have under consideration the alienation of Greenland; also the agreement of the British later on to abandon this condition. I then pointed out the gist of the notice given by this Government to the Government of Great Britain on June 5, 1920,17 to the effect that this Government was not disposed to recognize the existence in a third government of a right to acquire the territory of Greenland, should the Danish Government desire to dispose of it, and that this Government reserved for future consideration the position which it might take in such an eventuality. I called attention to the fact that the British Government still reserved the right to be consulted should the Danish Government at any time contemplate alienation of the territory in question. I handed to the Minister a copy of an aide-mémoire delivered to the British Embassy (copy attached)17a in order to place in the written records the current attitude of this Government with respect to this entire matter. The Minister seemed to be appreciative to have the benefit of this information.

I then said that the German military forces occupying Denmark could easily cause the Government of Denmark to issue orders about any phase of the Greenland situation, as they could about any phase of the entire Danish shipping interests spread throughout the world; that for that reason it is important that Greenland receive attention in the manner aforesaid; that furthermore my Government feels disposed to see to it through the Red Cross that the small population of Greenland does not suffer from hunger or lack of absolute necessities since its supplies are now cut off from Denmark, and also to see whether they need any cooperation pending the restoration of Denmark to its own independence and sovereignty to the end that its sovereignty over Greenland would automatically revert to it with its full integrity and force.

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The Minister said in this connection that he had recently talked over the telephone with Dr. Skelton of the Foreign Office at Ottawa and that the Canadians seemed to have their mind on the Greenland situation; that Dr. Skelton stated he was sending a message or a communication of some sort to the Canadian Minister at Washington in regard to the matter, and that Dr. Skelton finally remarked that if there was anything special to do with respect to the Greenland situation, the Government of the United States might well be looked to to do it. The Minister said finally that when he received the communication from Dr. Skelton, as referred to, he would acquaint me with anything that might be of interest to us.

C[ordell] H[ull]
  1. Loring C. Christie.
  2. See telegram No. 590, June 5, 1920, 7 p.m., to the Ambassador in Great Britain, Foreign Relations, 1922, vol. ii, p. 1.
  3. Not printed.