Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, 1942, Europe, Volume III

740.00112 European War 1939/7290

Memorandum of Conversation, by the Assistant Chief of the Division of European Affairs (Cumming)

[ Washington ,] December 1, 1942.

Participants:	Mr. Erik Boheman, Secretary General, Swedish Foreign Office;
	Mr. Dean Acheson, Assistant Secretary of State;
	Mr. Herschel Johnson, American Minister to Sweden;
	Mr. Hugh S. Cumming Jr., Assistant Chief, Division of European Affairs.

Mr. Boheman called on Mr. Acheson this afternoon at the latter’s request. Mr. Acheson told Mr. Boheman that he was authorized by the President to impart the following:

(1) The United States would release immediately the two tankers (the Sveadrott and the Saturnus) with petroleum supplies for Sweden. The supplies on these two tankers were to be reserved solely for Swedish military use. Mr. Acheson said that arrangements might be made to permit some of the oil to be used to replace oil which had been withdrawn from Swedish naval reserves for use on the Swedish vessels carrying relief supplies to Greece. Mr. Boheman agreed, however, that should any difficulty arise with respect to such use of the oil, it would, be perfectly agreeable to the Swedes to agree that the oil should be reserved solely for military purposes.

(2) The United States reserved all rights with respect to the two Norwegian ships now at Göteborg. He told Mr. Boheman that no action looking to the departure of these vessels from Göteborg would be taken until after the two tankers had arrived in Sweden. He cautioned Mr. Boheman, however, that after the tankers had arrived, the issue of the two Norwegian ships might be raised suddenly and at any time. Mr. Boheman nodded his understanding of this point.

(3) The War Shipping Administration desired to proceed as soon as possible with negotiations looking to the charter of a large proportion of the free Swedish ships now operating in Western Hemispheric waters. Some discussion as to procedure followed and it was arranged that Mr. Boheman would meet with Mr. Lewis Douglas⁵² and Mr. Acheson at 5 p.m. tomorrow to go into this question further. Mr. Boheman explained in this connection that he had no authority to promise more than that the Swedish Government would use its best influence with the Swedish shipowners to come to an agreement. In reply to Mr. Acheson’s direct inquiry, Mr. Boheman agreed that the two governments seem to be in agreement in principle that these ships were to be chartered to the War Shipping Administration. He repeated, however, that it would be necessary to bring a representative of the Swedish shipowners into the negotiations.

(4) Other questions, such as basic rations for Sweden, reduction in iron ore shipments to Germany, German troop transits through Sweden, Swedish credits to Germany, et cetera, would be taken up later, but as soon as possible. In this connection Mr. Acheson referred to previous conversations with Mr. Boheman and said that he had discussed with the Board of Economic Warfare the possibility of its sending some experts to Stockholm to study the Swedish data which were only available there.

On the question of German troop transits, Mr. Boheman said he could not now make any specific promise but that he anticipated that the course of military events would in practice bring about a reduction from 250,000 a year to about 225,000. He said that the transit of these German soldiers was repugnant to the Swedish people and that his Government felt that the real question to be faced at an opportune time was not so much a reduction from 1000 to 800 a day but the stoppage of all troop transits. The solution of this question would, however, have to await developments in the general situation.

Mr. Boheman said that the Swedish negotiations which had been taking place in Berlin with regard to Swedish-German trade for 1943 had been suspended and that the Swedish negotiator had returned to Stockholm. It was essential, however, that an agreement be arrived at during December, as otherwise there was great danger that a Swedish-German trade war might commence early in January 1943.

Mr. Boheman several times said that his Government had informed him that it preferred to await his return to Stockholm before making definite commitments with regard to the above matters. He could say, however, that the Swedish Government would bring about no change in the present situation without first informing the United States Government. He himself felt that it would be better for him to return to Stockholm as soon as possible and orally explain the United States point of view, which he now thoroughly understood, to his Government. Mr. Acheson agreed that this would be desirable and said that the Department would make arrangements for air transportation to London for Mr. Boheman and his assistant as soon as possible.

Mr. Boheman said that he would send a telegram to his Government at once informing it of his conversation with Mr. Acheson but that he did not expect that he could receive a reply before his meeting with Mr. Acheson and representatives of the Board of Economic Warfare at 6 p.m. tomorrow.

52. Deputy Administrator of the War Shipping Administration.