Office of the Historian

792.9411/1: Telegram

The Ambassador in Japan (Grew) to the Secretary of State

Tokyo, December 3, 1940—4 p.m.
[Received December 3—10:35 a.m.]

1264. Reference Bangkok’s November 28, 11 a.m.

1.
The Thai Minister informed me yesterday that he is conducting no negotiations with the Japanese Government with a view to the conclusion of a military alliance and that he has no information that such negotiations are being conducted anywhere.
2.
He also stated that in the current hostilities on the Mekong River the French forces had taken the initiative in bombing Thailand villages.
3.
With reference to the Thai claims to Indo-Chinese territory and with further reference to our 1145, November 13, midnight; and to Department’s 481, November 16, 6 p.m.,65 I cannot refrain from expressing the opinion that the British recommendation that we accept “without too much protest” the more limited Thai claims, should these claims be realized (by force of arms), involves threat to the whole principle of the maintenance of the status quo in East Asia, which I [Page 230] believe the British themselves have indorsed. The amount of territory so acquired, whether great or small, would seem to be beside the point. To accede tacitly to any such acquisition of territory by force, regardless of former rights or ownership, would be to weaken if not to invalidate our basic position vis-à-vis Japan’s incursions on foreign soil. Craigie informs me that he (and presumably his Government) visualizes realization of the Thai claims only by peaceful negotiation without military pressure.
Grew
  1. Neither printed.↩