840.50/2371: Telegram
The Ambassador in Chile (Bowers) to the Secretary of State
[Received August 12—6:56 a.m.]
1417. Department’s confidential mimeographed instruction July 13, 1943, file 840.50/2191a. The Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs [Page 964] today read to the Counselor extracts of a draft of an instruction to the Chilean Ambassador in Washington directing the latter to say that the Chilean Government approved in principle and “abstractly” the plans for a relief and rehabilitation administration and was in accord that a conference should be held at the earliest practicable date to form such an administration. It was the Under Secretary’s understanding, however, that acceptance of the idea in principle of the proposed organization and attendance at the conference did not imply that Chile would be expected to sign without alteration the draft agreement prepared by the State Department.
The Chilean Ambassador in Washington was directed in the draft instruction to seek confirmation of the Foreign Office’s understanding that attendance at the conference and participation in the administration would in no way obligate the Chilean Government to contributions for international relief and rehabilitation beyond the amount which the Chilean Government itself should decide could be given without prejudice to the national economy.
The Chilean Government moreover inclined strongly to object to the draft agreement in that apparently in practice the powers and functions proposed for the Central Committee whose membership was limited to the four principal belligerents would be given too much power for having decision in the hands of those countries recalling the organization of the League of Nations Council to which Chile and other democratic countries had [apparent omission].
The Counselor answered both objections with the observations of Assistant Secretary Acheson enclosed with the Department’s instruction under reference. The Under Secretary however maintained that it would be desirable that there be some alteration or enlargement of the Central Committee which would meet Chile’s tentative objections and the similar objections which he thought would be raised by other “democratic states”.
Will the Department please instruct me by telegraph as to the observations to be made to the points raised by the Under Secretary and inform me whether there is any objection to handing him a copy informally, perhaps editing out the name of Baron Boel,85 of the section of the memorandum of Mr. Acheson’s conversation relating to the role of the Central Committee, and perhaps also all or certain of the answers to the additional questions raised by Baron Boel.
- Financial Adviser to the Belgian Government.↩