740.0011 European War 1939/24086: Telegram
The Chargé in France (Tuck) to the Secretary of State
[Received September 8—9:25 a.m.]
1315. During the course of my conversation with Laval this afternoon I informed him of our attitude towards the transfer of either French or foreign merchant tonnage to Axis Powers as indicated in the first paragraph of the Department’s telegram 540 of September 4, 3 p.m.
Laval said that for some time past the Germans had been endeavoring to lay their hands on foreign merchant tonnage in French ports. The total amount of such tonnage amounts approximately, to 70,000 tons of which he said about half is now being used by the French Government for its own needs. Laval added that this foreign merchant tonnage was legally the property of shipowners in countries which are now controlled and occupied by the Germans (Holland, Belgium, Norway, and Denmark) and that these shipowners had [Page 197] under pressure agreed to charter these vessels to the German Government. Under such circumstances there was little that the French Government could do or say.
While no final decision had as yet been reached he believed that the proportion of this foreign merchant tonnage lying idle in French ports and amounting approximately to 40,000 tons would be taken over by the Germans. These ships, however, would not be operated under the French flag or by French crews.
He gave me his formal assurance that there was no question of the transfer of French merchant tonnage to Axis Powers.
In a subsequent conversation with Rochat he confirmed this information.