856B.01/23
The Netherlands Minuter (Loudon) to the Secretary of State
Sir: I have been instructed by the Netherlands Minister for Foreign Affairs to inform Your Excellency that the Netherlands Government and the Government of Its Allies are seriously concerned about the security of the oil refineries in the islands of Aruba and Curaçao which are of vital importance to their war effort. There is reason to fear attempt at sabotage by Germans or German agents, and that local authorities may have insufficient forces at their command to deal with these attempts. It has therefore been agreed that small additional [Page 735] forces from neighbouring allied territories should be placed at the disposal of the local Netherlands authorities for security purposes.
In case the United States Government would feel inclined to cooperate with the Netherlands Government and the Governments of the Allies of The Netherlands in this matter, such cooperation would be most welcome to the Governments concerned.
I avail myself [etc.]