891.24/264a
The Secretary of State to the Secretary of War (Stimson)
My Dear Mr. Secretary: As you are aware, the Government of Iran has presented to this Government requests for certain military supplies which it desires to obtain under the Lend-Lease procedure for the use of the Iranian Army and rural police force. I understand that these requests have been submitted to the International Division, Services of Supply, War Department, which has presented them for consideration by the appropriate allocation bodies.
In this connection, and for guidance in the future handling of similar cases, an officer of the War Department has asked that the Department of State set forth its views with regard to the procedure to be followed in the requisitioning and consignment of Lend-Lease supplies [Page 298] of a military character which may be allocated for the use of the Iranian forces.
Iran became eligible for Lend-Lease aid on March 11 [10], 1942, the President having declared its defense vital to that of the United States and the Iranian Government having made the formal representations required by the terms of the Act of March 11, 1941.23 There is, therefore, full legal authority to furnish Lend-Lease assistance direct to the Iranian Government. Accordingly, this Department believes that requisitions for supplies to be used by the Iranian military and rural police forces should be made out and presented by the authorized Iranian representatives in the United States and that the supplies should be consigned for overseas shipment to the Iranian Government or an agency in Iran designated by that Government.
In making this decision, the Department has been guided by the following considerations:
- 1)
- Since supplies of the type in question will be intended solely for the official use of the Iranian Government, it is not necessary for this Government to retain control of them in order to ensure that they do not reach an undesirable ultimate consumer.
- 2)
- Major General Clarence S. Ridley, Army of the United States, has been designated adviser to the Iranian Army on matters pertaining to the service of supply and will be in a position to supervise the receipt and use of articles supplied to the army.
- 3)
- Colonel H. Norman Schwarzkopf, Army of the United States, is now serving as adviser to the Iranian rural police force and will be in a position to supervise the receipt and use of articles supplied to that force.
- 4)
- The Iranian Government has repeatedly expressed its strong desire to receive Lend-Lease aid direct from the American Government, without the intermediation of any third party. It is believed that any other procedure would offend the Iranian Government and would dissipate the good effect which our assistance may be expected to produce.
The Department has, of course, no thought that the indicated procedure should be applied to the furnishing of supplies needed by the military forces of the United Nations stationed in Iran.
Sincerely yours,
Assistant Secretary
- 55 Stat. 31.↩