868.01/333¾
The Department of State to the British Embassy
Memorandum
The British Embassy’s memorandum of August 4, 1943 has received careful consideration, in the light of the further statement regarding British policy toward Greece presented to the Quebec conference on August 22, 1943,53 and of the discussions of this matter which took place at Quebec.
Under date of September 6, the President addressed the following reply to the recent message of King George II:
“I hope that in the interest of our common war effort all Greeks will accept the program announced in Your Majesty’s radio address of July 4 as a guarantee that they will have full opportunity freely to express their political will at the earliest practicable moment and that they will meanwhile subordinate other considerations to the urgent necessity of winning the war and liberating their homeland.”
Ambassador Kirk was authorized to inform the King orally that while the President would find it difficult to advise the King as regards the reply to be made to the Greek emissaries in Cairo, about whom he had little information, he doubted the desirability of any further statement by His Majesty at this time.
As the Embassy knows from the Department’s Aide-Mémoires of July 2 and 17, 1943, this Government has considered that it would not interpose objection to the return of the King and Government to Greece as soon as the military situation should permit, in accordance with the assurances and procedure which they have from time to time announced, notably in the King’s radio address of July 4, 1943, unless it should become clear during the military operations that such return would be overwhelmingly contrary to the wishes of the people and could only result in civil warfare.
With specific reference to the situation of the Greek King, it is the Department’s understanding that the President discussed the matter with the Prime Minister and understood that the British Foreign Office would reply to the King’s telegram, in the sense that the British Government would support the King’s contention that he was prepared to return to Greece as soon as possible and would submit the question of the Royal House to plebiscite.
As regards the general principles applying to liberated countries, this Government is in substantial agreement with the statement of such principles set forth in the fifth paragraph of the Embassy’s Aide-Mémoire of August 4, which are reflected in the proposed statement on this subj3ect approved at Quebec.
In this connection, the British Embassy’s attention may be called to the reference in its Aide-Mémoire regarding the United States “representative on the Allied Territories (Balkans) Committee in Cairo”, from which it would appear that the Foreign Office was not aware that the only American connected with this Committee was in fact an “observer” from General Brereton’s54 staff whose functions were limited to military supply matters. This and related questions were discussed at Quebec between the British Foreign Secretary and the Secretary of State, who agreed generally as to the necessity of establishing some definite machinery for discussing and reaching agreement on political and economic aspects of future military operations on the Continent. Consequently, in view of the obviously urgent need for a more direct method of consultation as regards Southeastern Europe, the Department of State, with the approval of the President, has instructed Ambassador Winant to propose to the British Government that United [Page 154] States political and economic representatives be appointed to participate in the work of the AT (B)55 Committee in Cairo.