Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, 1943, General, Volume I

840.48 Refugees/3868

The British Embassy to the Department of State

Aide-Mémoire

His Majesty’s Ambassador at Madrid learned in the last week in March that the Spanish Government had closed the Pyrenean frontier to refugees and that foreigners entering Spain clandestinely were to be sent back to France where they would be handed over to the German authorities.

Subsequently the Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs, while maintaining that closure of the frontier was necessary, informed Sir Samuel Hoare⁴⁶ that the Spanish Government had not given instructions to the frontier authorities to surrender refugees and escaping prisoners. The United States Ambassador at Madrid is understood to have obtained an assurance that the closing of the frontier would not compromise the exit of prisoners and refugees already in Spain.

His Majesty’s Government later learned that the instructions to the Spanish frontier authorities to hand over refugees to the Germans had been rescinded, but understand that the frontier remains officially closed in spite of the protests of the United States and British Ambassadors.

Accordingly the Prime Minister made strong representations to the Spanish Ambassador in London on the subject on April 7th, and a short account of the conversation is attached. His Majesty’s Government hope that the United States Government will make representations on similar lines to the Spanish Ambassador in Washington.

Washington , April 16, 1943.

[Enclosure]

Memorandum of a Conversation Between the British Prime Minister (Churchill) and the Spanish Ambassador (Tormes)

The Prime Minister said we hoped for friendly relations with Spain and that we wished to see Spain peaceful and prosperous but that if the Spanish Government went to the length of preventing these unfortunate people seeking safety from the horror of Nazi domination, and if they went further and committed the offence of actually handing them back to German authorities, that was a thing which would be the destruction of good relations.

The Spanish Ambassador said that his Government were very apprehensive of the embarrassment to which they might be exposed by the mass of influential refugees helped by Foreign Embassies from France. The Prime Minister pointed out that it was for the Germans to regulate this and to patrol their side of the frontier. If they could not do this effectively it was certainly not up to the Spanish to reject these unfortunate people and there could not be reprisals by the Germans for accepting them.

46. British Ambassador in Spain.