840.50/3996/8: Telegram
The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant) to the Secretary of State
[Received 11:15 p.m.]
3127. Embassy’s 2398, May 5; 2532, May 9; 2670, May 15;20 2748, May 18;21 and Department’s 2097, May 12.
1. Dutch and Norwegian Government representatives here are becoming increasingly restive at restraint being temporarily placed upon their desire to make immediate and independent supply purchases for post-war relief use in their respective countries. This situation prevails despite the joint Anglo-American memorandum of May 14.
2. British therefore feel that some statement about coordination of purchasing for post-war needs should be made at a meeting of the Inter-Allied Committee on Post-War Requirements to be held before Leith-Ross departs for Washington.
Leith-Ross therefore proposes to circulate to all the members of Inter-Allied Committee before holding such a meeting a brief “note [Page 110] from the Chairman” which would be merely a slightly abbreviated text of the memorandum already handed to Dutch and Norwegians on May 14.
Embassy perceives no objection to this procedure and will Assume Department likewise has none unless contrary notification is received. Aforementioned one will probably be circulated early next week.
3. In view of the difficulty being experienced in holding Dutch and Norwegians in line with respect to relief purchases and delay in formulating any concrete program for presentation to Allies, British suggest that purchases might be permitted to Allied Government[s] in London, before decision is reached at proposed Washington meeting, subject to three general conditions. These would be:
- (a)
- That any purchases for post-war relief made before war ends should be effected through official purchasing organizations of either UCS [USA?] or UK and should be subject to such conditions as needs of war effort necessitate. At same time, technical services of these purchasing organizations would be available to purchasing country;
- (b)
- That if any stocks acquired in this manner or already held by Allied Governments for post-war purposes are found to be needed for war purposes, purchasing organizations should have power to take them over under a guarantee of replacement at earliest convenient date;
- (c)
- That when the United Nations relief organization is established it also should have power to call for such stocks should they be needed for relief needs of greater urgency than those of the owning country or if their use would effect an economy in the use of shipping. The same guarantee of replacement as early as possible would apply in this case.
4. If scheme embodying above conditions could be agreed upon by the United Kingdom and the United States Governments in near future it would undoubtedly help to keep Dutch and Norwegians contented. It would not seem to prejudice the position of other countries or the results of the Washington conference. Such a scheme might be held in reserve for use only in case all other Allied Governments showed unanimous or sharp dissatisfaction with request embodied in proposed “note from the Chairman”.
If the Department has any objections to above proposal I would appreciate receiving its viewpoint as soon as possible.