394.1115/64: Telegram
The Ambassador in Japan (Grew) to the Secretary of State
[Received August 22—12:25 p.m.]
1289. Department’s 504, August 15, 5 p.m.33 and previous correspondence relating to freezing orders in the United States and Japan. Today I requested an interview with [the] Foreign Minister and, first observing that to date we have received no replies to any of our representations in connection with the subject under reference, including our aide-mémoire dated August 9, 1941,34 I set forth to him orally and also in a first-person note and accompanying memorandum in general and in detail the serious disparity existing in the treatment accorded to American Government officials and other American nationals residing in Japan and the treatment accorded to Japanese Government officials and other Japanese nationals residing in the United States under the freezing orders in both countries. I pointed out to the Minister that the American freezing orders were not intended to and does not in practice work undue hardship to Japanese nationals in the United States whereas the application of the Japanese freezing orders is working the most drastic hardship to American nationals in Japan.
The American freezing orders in effect works along lines similar to the restrictions and handicaps which American business and trade and commerce have encountered in Japan and in Japanese occupied areas during the last several years. Japan, on the other hand, has evidently interpreted its own freezing orders as aimed both in theory and practice at severely restricting the normal activities and both official and personal privileges of American citizens residing in Japan to an extent which has worked and is still working the greatest unreasonable hardship. The result has been and is an almost complete cessation of financial and business activities on the part of American individuals and firms here and represents utter disparity in treatment. I urged the Minister with the greatest emphasis to take such prompt steps with a view to placing the treatment of our respective nationals on a basis more nearly reciprocal than that formerly existing. I pointed out that the foundation of international relations is reciprocity and I did not fail to indicate that in the absence of favorable results in this respect my Government would obviously have no alternative but to consider such measures as might be necessary to establish reciprocal treatment.
The Minister received my representations in his usual sympathetic way and expressed his regret at the situation which I had described [Page 864] to him. He said that he would do his best to place these matters on a basis of reciprocity.