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

550.AD1/293a

The Department of State to the British Embassy ²⁶

With reference to the informal note of the British Embassy of March 29, 1943, commenting on certain aspects of the forthcoming United Nations Conference on Food and Agriculture, the Department of State has the following observations to make.

1. The United States Government is in full accord with the views of the British Government as to the relation of the conference to Article VII discussions as a whole. It would have been wholly agreeable to this Government to have included in the text of the invitation some appropriate reference to the principles of the Atlantic Charter²⁷ and the principles and objectives set forth in Article VII of the Mutual Aid Agreement. The shortness of time remaining before the calling of the conference, however, made it appear inexpedient to attempt to clear further any changes in the text of the invitation with the principal governments which had been consulted in advance. It is the intention of this Government, however, that at the opening address it would be made clear that this Government regards the food conference as an initial and integral part of the general program of discussions contemplated in Article VII.

2. The United States Government is also in full agreement with the British Government that there should be preliminary discussions and agreement between the United States, the United Kingdom and the Soviet and Chinese Governments on all matters relating to the general program under Article VII and that following such discussions, the other members of the United Nations should be approached. With that thought in view the United States Government first sought the views of the British, Soviet and Chinese Governments on March 8²⁸ and did not issue invitations to the conference until the replies of these three governments had been received. It is also the intention of this Government to begin informal discussions in the next few days with representatives of the British Government on the draft agenda for the conference.

3. With regard to the inquiry of the British Government regarding the possible postponement of the date of the conference, it has now been decided, as the various governments have been informed, to delay the opening of the conference until May 18.

4. The United States Government is also in agreement with the British Government that the Food Conference should avoid the appointment of committees to deal with wider questions of economic and financial policy. As indicated in the Department’s note of April 8, 1943, it would be the view of the United States Government that the conference would endeavor to relate the problems inherent in the production and exchange of food and agricultural products to the wider fields of trade and finance in general, in the expectation that these would form, in due course, the subject of further discussions among the various nations. As far as matters appropriate to the conference itself are concerned, however, it would appear to be desirable that the conference should make recommendations to the member governments as to methods for continuing and carrying forward the work of the conference.

5. It is not entirely clear what the British Government had in mind in suggesting that at this first United Nations Conference it is essential to avoid raising controversial topics on which the ground has not been prepared in previous discussion. If it was the intention to suggest that there should not be raised at the conference controversial questions of broad political and economic policy, the United States Government believes that the draft agenda which has been distributed makes it clear that it was not intended to raise such questions. On the other hand it would appear that matters which are strictly germane to the sphere of discussions of the conference should be open to free and general discussion at the expert technical level in order that each country might come to understand better the problems and points of view of all other countries. The conference should, however, at this stage, be limited to an exploration of the problems and of the possible means of dealing with those problems and its general resolutions and reports, which would not be final actions for ratification by member governments, would thus offer opportunity to explore and set forth a wide variety of points of view, where such exist, for further study and discussion, without giving rise to controversy which might develop if final solutions were to be decided upon. The United States Government would hope that this is substantially what the British Government had in mind in suggesting the undesirability of embarking on controversial topics.

Washington , April 13, 1943.

26. Marginal note: “Handed by Mr. Acheson to Mr. Opie of the British Embassy 4/13/43.”
27. Joint statement by President Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Churchill, August 14, 1941, Foreign Relations, 1941, vol. i, p. 367.
28. See telegram No. 1465, March 8, 9 p.m., to the Chargé in the United Kingdom, and footnote 1, p. 820.