751.94/109: Telegram
The Chargé in France (Murphy) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 27—8 p.m.]
400. Department’s 227, March 25, 5 p.m.94 Chauvel showed me this morning the originals of telegrams dated March 9, 1940 signed by Daladier and sent to Saint-Quentin and to the French Ambassador at Chungking. In both telegrams Daladier states that the Japanese correspondent of the Osaka Mainichi and Nichi Nichi misquoted him in the course of the interview granted on February 29 and that the United Press further distorted the Japanese account of the interview. Daladier denied that he had promised recognition of the government of Manchukuo and he also said that the reference to aid for Chiang Kai Shek was distorted. Daladier merely referred to the French voluntary action of October 1937 limiting the articles which could be transported over the Yunnan Railroad.
I asked Chauvel whether there would be any objection to my mentioning the matter to Daladier and obtaining from him whatever oral remarks he might care to make. Chauvel said he would be very pleased if I did so because it would be evidence of what he daily tries to impress on the government, namely, that the United States is interested in Far Eastern affairs. …
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I called on Daladier this evening. …
Daladier said that parts of the Japanese and United Press versions of the interview are made out of whole cloth. The version appearing in the Matin while not as exaggerated is also incorrect. But one of the correspondents spoke the French language. Daladier is not sure whether the distortions of his statements are due to faulty knowledge of the language or intentional (he is inclined to believe the latter). He does not like to grant interviews but when he does he prefers to give the correspondents credit for sufficient honesty to be able to receive them without witnesses. Having received some time ago a correspondent of a competitor of the Osaka Mainichi, he thought it only fair to receive the correspondent of the latter.
During the interview the correspondents tried to pin Daladier down on the issue of Manchukuo and French aid to Chiang Kai Shek. Daladier said that each time he sidestepped. When the correspondents [Page 303] asked whether he had in mind the recognition of the Emperor of Manchukuo, Daladier replied that he was thinking a great deal more of Hitler and Germany. He did say that France is not shipping arms and ammunition to China and that he told the correspondents that obviously France was not in a position to do so. He also mentioned to the correspondents the paradox of the Soviet Union’s aid to China at the same time the Russians are aiding Germany. He went over the same ground as described by Chauvel in connection with the Yunnan Railroad. Daladier said that obviously the Japanese had not paid much attention to his remarks because he understood that they had bombed the colliery 4 or 5 days afterwards.
Daladier denied categorically that he had said that France intended to recognize the government of Manchuria or that he had said that conversations would be opened on that subject. He also denied that he had said anything which could even be construed as meaning that France would discontinue aid to China.
Approval of the release of the interview as written by the United Press was given by a young attaché in Daladier’s diplomatic Cabinet who has no knowledge of Far Eastern affairs. Chauvel showed me the copy as stamped and said the young man had not had a happy time of it since.
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