852.48/1455: Telegram
The Ambassador in Spain (Hayes) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 25—10:12 a.m.]
709. Inasmuch as French funds have not yet been made available here and in view of complete exhaustion of our own funds as predicted we have been placed in the embarrassing and highly undesirable position of being unable to meet continuing obligations incident to refugee [Page 273] relief operations. Despite agreement of French to take over expenses of care of their own nationals it should be pointed out that we are still conducting the relief program and therefore looked to by Spanish and refugees alike as responsible for the support of this program and any onus resulting from the failure to meet obligations promptly is bound to fall on us.
It is urgently necessary that funds be made immediately available to French for care of French refugees bearing in mind that over $100,000 will be required to cover unpaid past obligations alone.
Funds are also urgently needed for our own account to cover care of declared Americans and expenses incident to relief operations in general. For these purposes are [we?] request the sum of $100,000 which should cover past obligations as well as future obligations for several months. This estimate assumes the necessity of no further expenditures on behalf of French refugees as such.
Repeated to Algiers.