Office of the Historian

893.24/1449: Telegram

The Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Standley) to the Secretary of State

Kuibyshev, October 2, 1942—3 p.m.
[Received October 4—10:09 a.m.]

842. The British Counselor informed the Embassy yesterday that although the Soviet Government had reached an understanding with the Chinese whereby the Soviet railroad system would be permitted annually to carry 24,000 tons of merchandise in transit to China, the Soviet authorities had now agreed in principle to British proposal relative to the delivery of such supplies via British India, Iran and Russian Central Asia and that this proposal was along the following lines:

1.
The development of the road route from Nok-Kundi to Meshed via Zahidan will be completed up to a capacity of 10,000 tons a month provided the Soviet Government agrees that 60% of the supplies delivered at Meshed over this route will be destined for China and that it will undertake the responsibility for the onward transport of these supplies from Meshed to Lanchow. The remaining 40% delivered at Meshed will be consigned to the Soviet Union. As a result, when the full capacity of this route has been reached, China will receive about 6,000 tons a month and the Soviet Union 4,000 tons.
2.
Since the transport of supplies from Alma Ata to Lanchow will require trucks, spare parts and other equipment, the British Government will take all possible measures to supply the equipment in question and to grant the necessary delivery priorities upon advice of the Soviet requirements.

Standley