Office of the Historian

882.20/600

Memorandum by the Liaison Officer (Wilson)25

[Washington,] May 23, 1942.

At the meeting of the Liaison Committee on May 20, the necessity of sending additional American troops to Liberia was discussed. The representatives of the War Department stated that a construction force of over 1000 men is scheduled to sail the latter part of this month. This force is armed with anti-tank and anti-aircraft artillery, machine guns, rifles, and pistols. Consequently, although these troops are primarily a construction force, they are also combat engineers.

The Under Secretary expressed the opinion that it would be helpful if President Barclay could be discreetly informed of the expected arrival of this force.

  1. Addressed to the Chief of the Division of Near Eastern Affairs (Ailing), the Assistant Chief of the Division of Near Eastern Affairs (Villard), and the Adviser on Political Relations (Murray).↩