740.00112 European War 1939/2515
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Assistant Chief of the Division of Near Eastern Affairs (Villard)
Mr. Guérin came in to say that the French Ambassador had received a telegram from his Government accepting in their entirety all conditions specified by the Department in regard to the importation of American products into North Africa. Mr. Guérin said that the Ambassador would deliver this message in person, but that, in the meantime, he wished to give us advance notice of the situation.
Mr. Guérin said that the assurances received from his Government covered the following points:
- (1)
- Every facility would be offered to American consular officers in North Africa to assure themselves that cargoes leaving North African ports for metropolitan France contained nothing which had not been authorized by the United States for importation into North Africa;
- (2)
- General Weygand would provide every facility for American officials to receive from the French maritime authorities at Casablanca and Algiers all information desired in respect to cargoes leaving North African ports, their manifests, dates of departure, et cetera; and
- (3)
- no products will be bought in foreign markets outside of the United States over and above the amounts named on the authorized [Page 239] list of importations without the prior consent of the United States Government.
The French Government furthermore undertook that no mail would be carried on the vessels transporting supplies between North Africa and the United States, that no passengers would be carried in either direction except those approved by the United States Government, and that facilities would be offered for the transportation of American control officers in so far as accommodations were available. Mr. Guérin said that there were accommodations for two officers on the oil tanker Schéhérazade, which would be ready to sail from New Orleans within twelve days after permission was given to load. Two men could also be carried on the first freighter prepared to sail, which would probably be within two weeks.
The French Government in return requested (1) that the American control officers be known as attaches of the nearest American consulate in their field of operations, and that no title such as “adviser” or “observer” should be given, though the designation “economic attaché” could be used; and (2) that, for obvious reasons, not too many of the observers should proceed at the same time to North Africa.