656D.9431/72: Telegram
The Ambassador in Japan (Grew) to the Secretary of State
[Received June 18—9:28 a.m.]
835. The following announcement was issued at noon today by the Board of Information:
“The recent developments surrounding the Netherlands East Indies have rendered difficult a smooth progress of the negotiations between Japan and the Netherlands East Indies which have been conducted at Batavia since September of last year. As the result, the Japanese Government, deeming such contents as are embodied in the reply of [Page 180] June 6 from the Netherlands delegation unsatisfactory to be specially made into an international agreement at this time, have decided to discontinue the negotiations and ordered Mister Kenkichi Yoshizawa, our special envoy, to return to Japan.”
The full text of a statement issued at the same time by the Director of the Third Division of the Board of Information is being forwarded to the Department via air mail to Shanghai.50 The final portion of this statement reads as follows:
“The reply of the Netherlands of June 6 is not only very unsatisfactory but asserts, in connection with the question of acquisition of essential materials and goods to which Japan attaches importance, that their quantities may be decreased at any time to suit their own convenience. In view of the fact that regarding this question, the government of the Netherlands as well as the Netherlands East Indies authorities have, on many occasions in the past, made promises of declarations to Japan, the Japanese Government, deeming such contents as are embodied in the Netherlands reply to be hardly worth being specially incorporated in an international agreement, have decided to discontinue the negotiations and to withdraw their delegation, ordering Mister Kenkichi Yoshizawa, their special envoy, to return to Japan. However, it goes without saying that Japan will hold fast to her just and fair contentions, while the normal relations between Japan and the Netherlands East Indies will by no means be affected by the discontinuance of the negotiations.”
- Not printed.↩