892.24/91
The Department of State to the British Embassy 23
Aide-Mémoire
Reference is made to two memoranda, dated October 25, 1941, left with the Under Secretary of State, Mr. Welles, on October 27, by the British Minister, Sir Ronald Campbell, in regard to the situation of Thailand and to the question of making available war materials to the Government of Thailand.
For some weeks it has been the policy of the Government of the United States to give sympathetic consideration to priority and export applications filed on behalf of the Thai Government and, whenever practicable in the face of the very great and urgent demands from other areas upon this country’s production, take favorable action upon such applications.
On August 18 the Secretary of State, in reply to the Thai Minister’s oral inquiry as to the attitude of this Government toward Thailand in case Thailand should be attacked and endeavor in good [Page 334] faith to defend itself, commented that the United States has been aiding China in many ways against the aggression of Japan and that in the contingency mentioned this Government would place Thailand in the same category as China.
With regard to the proposal of the British Government to offer to release to the Thai Government certain howitzers and field guns with accompanying ammunition conditional on the acceptance by the Thai Government of a number of military instructors, question is raised whether a stipulation that the Thai Government accept military instructors might not be interpreted by the Japanese Government as contrary to the political accord between the Japanese Government and the Thai Government arrived at in connection with the Japanese Government’s mediation of the Thai-French Indochinese border controversy, and thus serve as a pretext to the Japanese Government for the exertion of additional pressure upon Thailand.
With regard to the question of aircraft, information has been received that the American Naval and Military Attaches at Bangkok are under the impression that there may be certain airplanes at Singapore in excess of the number which can, with the trained pilots available there, be used to advantage. The suggestion is offered that the British may wish to consider the release to Thailand of a number of these planes. Should that be not practicable, there is offered the further suggestion that, if the British Government, after weighing its own needs and the needs of Thailand and taking into account all political and military factors, should decide to make available to Thailand from planes being supplied to it from this country a certain number of planes, this Government would be agreeable to such an arrangement.
With regard to the question of aviation gasoline and lubricating oil for the Thai air force, this matter is being looked into and we shall expect to make reply on this point in the near future.
- Handed on November 6 to the British Minister (Campbell) by the Adviser on Political Relations (Hornbeck).↩