840.50/253½
The Director General, British Ministry of Economic Warfare (Leith-Ross), to the Assistant Secretary of State (Acheson)
[Received October 17.]
Dear Mr. Acheson: I was very glad to get your letter of 22nd July last, dealing with the policy and procedure which might be followed in dealing with the question of export surpluses and postwar European needs. I have submitted it to my Ministers here, who have considered it carefully and authorised me to send you the following reply. They feel that some of the points of principle raised in the earlier paragraphs of your letter need a good deal of further consideration, as they raise issues or have implications extending beyond the field of surpluses and European relief, but they are in full agreement with the practical steps proposed in paragraph 10 of your letter and they welcome the suggestion that these questions should be the subject of further joint study. They believe that the best course would be for me to go over to Washington for a visit in order to explore these questions further, if and when convenient to you. His Majesty’s Ambassador at Washington has been requested to approach you on the matter and to ascertain whether you agree, and if so, what date would be convenient to you. From my point of view, it would probably be best that I should not go over for some weeks at any rate, so as to give further time for discussion here of some of [Page 112] the issues involved, and to enable me to bring over fuller data about prospective European requirements.30
Yours sincerely,
- In November a reply to this letter was drafted, but it was not sent. The visit of Sir Frederick Leith-Ross to Washington was delayed until the summer of 1942.↩