810.20 Defense/5215/16

The Chargé in Guatemala (Cabot) to the Secretary of State
No. 1573

Sir: With reference to the Department’s strictly confidential Instruction No. 492 of October 5, 1940,63 I have the honor to enclose herewith copy and translation of the reply which I have received from the Foreign Office with respect to the staff conversations held between Guatemalan and American officers in this City in September last. This reply has been delayed due to the absence of General Mendoza in the United States.

The Department will note that although the points made in this note largely cover those raised in the Department’s instruction No. 503 of October 21, 1940,64 the Foreign Minister has made it clear to me that this reply was prepared before he had received the note which I submitted in accordance with the Department’s instruction under [Page 119] reference: I shall of course forward the Guatemalan reply to my second note as soon as it has been received.

Respectfully yours,

John M. Cabot
[Enclosure—Translation]
The Guatemalan Minister for Foreign Affairs (Salazar) to the American Chargé (Cabot)

Mr. Chargé: I have the honor to refer to that Honorable Legation’s Note No. 111 of October 17 last,65 in which you were good enough to inquire as to the attitude of this Government with regard to the recommendations resulting from the conversations recently held between high military authorities of the United States and General Rodolfo A. Mendoza, Chief of the General Staff of the Guatemalan Army.

I take pleasure in informing Your Honor that the Ministry of State of the Office of War has today communicated to me that the Government of the Republic accepts the following points discussed in the above-mentioned conversation:

1.
The Government of Guatemala is interested in sending to the United States some agents of the investigation service to receive training under the Federal Agency of Investigation (FBI) in the methods employed by that secret service.
2.
The Government of Guatemala does not object to having a military airplane of the United States come to the country with the object of taking aerial photographs of airdromes, maritime ports and other strategic regions, it being understood that the Government of the Republic will receive copies of all the photographs taken and that opportunity will be given Guatemalan aviators to receive instruction in all the aspects of this type of work.
3.
The Government of Guatemala sees no objection to the coming to this country of the following officers of the United States Army:
a.
A doctor to make a study of the climate, diseases, hospitals, shelters, water (quantity and potability).
b.
An engineer to make a similar survey of the highways, railways, rolling stock, repair shops, wharves and landing facilities and construction materials.
c.
An officer of the signal communication corps to make a similar survey of facilities and the system of electric communications.

With regard to the suggestion that the Government of Guatemala make use of a small launch, preferably armed, to reinforce the patrol which the aerial forces and land observers are actually maintaining along the coast, I much regret to inform Your Honor that this will [Page 120] not be possible inasmuch as in the Pacific it is not possible to use a small launch, and a larger craft for this purpose does not exist.

I request that Your Honor be good enough to communicate the above to your Illustrious Government.

I avail myself [etc.]

Carlos Salazar
  1. Not printed.
  2. Not printed. This instruction transmitted a letter from the Secretary of War, October 11, 1940, pointing out certain discrepancies between the Spanish and English texts of the staff agreement (810.20 Defense 287½).
  3. Not printed.