740.0011 Moscow/91: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the President and the Acting Secretary of State (Stettinius)1
1784. Secret for the President and the Acting Secretary from the Secretary. DelAm No. 42.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
… Molotov … turned to the question of the Italian ships. He said that he did not consider that the reply of the United States which I had submitted2 was very satisfactory since to refer this question to a meeting of the three heads of state, which was still very indefinite, would appear to postpone a decision of this matter. I pointed out that in [?] suggesting the reference of the matter to the three heads 6f state was merely one of the means by which it might be settled and I personally on my return to Washington would be more than glad to take up this question with my government in the event that the meeting of the three heads of state was long delayed.
The Conference then adjourned until tomorrow at four o’clock.
- Sent by the Ambassador, Moscow, in the numerical series of telegrams from the Embassy to the Department of State. A copy of the telegram was sent by the Department to the White House and was forwarded by pouch to Roosevelt, who was at Hyde Park October 30–November 3, 1943.↩
- See Roosevelt’s telegram of October 26, 1943, to Hull, ante, p. 120. On October 28 Hull informed Molotov of the position set forth in Roosevelt’s telegram, and—perhaps in the light of the reference, in the telegram, to the determination of title to the Italian ships “at a later date”—he added, “Further discussion should be held between the staffs of our three Governments, or perhaps by the heads of Governments”; Hull, vol. ii, p. 1302. On October 29, 1943, Churchill cabled Eden that “it would be better to put off this question till ‘Eureka’ “; Churchill, p. 295.↩