825.24/902: Airgram
The Ambassador in Chile (Bowers) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 23—5 p.m.]
A–410. Reference is made to the recent visit of Horton Henry and Dr. Wilkinson regarding the decentralization of export control.
Memorandum OE–3–3FBA dated January 13, 1943, of the BEW91 regarding the proposed mechanics for decentralization of consignee control states as follows:
“In countries where the Preference Request is to be used, such screening will make it unnecessary for an additional check to be made in Washington as to the satisfactory nature of any consignee or ultimate user named therein when the Preference Request is forwarded to BEW. However, if only a modified plan of decentralization of export control is in effect with the respective country (similar to the one suggested for Colombia) license applications in certain cases will have to be checked in, Washington, despite the fact that the Certificate of Necessity or Certificate of Essentiality has been screened in the field.”
Since it was agreed to institute full decentralization of export control in Chile as of April 1, 1943, it is assumed that the Department and BEW intend to decentralize consignee control also. This point, however, was not made clear during the Henry–Wilkinson visit. If such consignee control decentralization has been approved for Chile, please telegraph me the date on which the Embassy should inaugurate its new case file of intelligence material to cover the interim period of transfer of files from Washington to Santiago during which the Department will be unable to summarize on the Abstract-Licensing cards.
- Board of Economic Warfare.↩