867.24/616

Memorandum by the Chief of the Division of Near Eastern Affairs (Ailing) to the Assistant Secretary of State (Acheson)

Mr. Acheson: With reference to our conversation yesterday concerning the intention of the War Department and the Office of Lend-Lease Administration to inform the Turkish authorities here of the decision that the British would henceforth bid on the Turkish requirements before the Munitions Assignments Board, I attach a memorandum of conversation69 regarding the notification.

I may say that immediately following the receipt in Washington of the decision that the British would bid on Turkish requirements, Mr. May, OLLA, called Mr. Allen of this Division to discuss the best means of dealing with the situation with which his office was confronted as a result of the decision. Mr. Allen raised the same point which you raised yesterday, i.e., why was it necessary to “break the news to the Turks” at all? Mr. Allen suggested that it might be better to allow matters to take their course, certainly for the time being, until more information had been received regarding the actual decision reached. Yesterday morning, however, Mr. May called to say that Colonel Baird had received instructions from the Munitions Assignments Board which made it necessary that he discontinue the type of collaboration with the Turkish military officials which he had been carrying on for several months. In view of the impossibility of avoiding, even for a few days, some statement to the Turks, Colonel Baird felt it preferable to convey the necessary information in a personal interview rather than by means of a letter. Consequently, Colonel Baird had [Page 1093] made an appointment with the Turkish Military Attaché. Mr. May was glad to accompany Colonel Baird, since his office was faced with an entirely similar situation. He thought that it would be much more courteous to call on the Turkish military officials with whom they had been dealing continuously and most pleasantly from day to day, rather than to be forced to tell them suddenly without warning on the occasion of their next call to discuss Turkish requirements.

Mr. May emphasized that the Lend-Lease representatives and Colonel Baird discussed the subject only with the Turkish military and supply officials, and did not have any discussions with Turkish diplomatic officials.

There is attached a copy of a secret memorandum, which Mr. May has given us, issued by the secretariat of the Munitions Assignments Board70 for the guidance of all concerned, embodying the Casablanca decision. Both Colonel Baird and Mr. May regard these instructions as mandatory.

Paul H. Alling
  1. Supra.
  2. Dated January 22, p. 1090.