Editorial Note

No official record of the substance of this conversation has been found. It appears to have followed the de Gaulle-Giraud meeting described in de Gaulle, pp. 89–92 and in Giraud, pp. 105–107. In information supplied to the Historical Office, Murphy recalls that this meeting was concerned with the effort to resolve the conflict between de Gaulle and Giraud. De Gaulle (p. 92) says that he informed Murphy that it had not been possible to reach an agreement with Giraud regarding the unity of French liberation forces. De Gaulle also states that Murphy informed him at this time that Roosevelt and Giraud “had just signed an agreement” providing for deliveries of weapons and supplies to Giraud’s forces in North Africa and the recognition of Giraud as military and civil commander in Africa. The two memoranda constituting the agreement with Giraud were not approved by Roosevelt, however, until the following morning; see telegram 124, February 1, 1943, from Murphy, post, p. 825.