Office of the Historian

740.00119 Control (Italy)/17: Telegram

The American Representative to, the French Committee of National Liberation at Algiers (Wilson) to the Secretary of State

Algiers, December 26, 1943—6 p.m.
[Received December 27—1:55 a.m.]

259. For Dunn and Murphy from Reinhardt. With reference to paragraph 3 of my 252, December 25, 3 [4] p.m. and Department’s 212, December 22, 10 p.m., which reached here after the Council’s meeting on December 24, may I bring to your attention following considerations:

1.
The present plan to have Soviet and French “members” on the Control Commission would appear to be a most acceptable compromise between our original intention of limiting participation in the Commission to American and British officials only and the Soviet and French desire actively to participate in the organization’s operations, which would presumably have involved the presence of numerous Soviet and French officials within the organization.
2.
It is Macmillan’s and my understanding that the question is one of a token representation tantamount to accepting a kind of superior “liaison officer”. Like the Soviets the French are not only full members of the Advisory Council but they have as well people on such a technical body of the Control Commission as the Sub-Commission for Displaced Persons. To deny them the opportunity of [Page 444] attaching what amounts to an observer to the Control Commission at a time when French troops are in action in Italy would not only appear difficult to explain but would almost certainly jeopardize the future harmonious work of the Advisory Council.
3.
This is particularly true since as reported in reference telegram both British and Soviet members of the Council under instructions from their Governments have gone on record in the presence of Massigli in support of this French representation.
4.
Wilson concurs with the foregoing. [Reinhardt.]

Wilson