561.333D3/1510
The Assistant Chief of the Division of the American Republics (Daniels) to the Brazilian Financial Attaché (Penteado)
My Dear Mr. Penteado: With further reference to your letter of March 12, 1943, and supplementing my preliminary acknowledgment of March 13, 1943,81 I am pleased to confirm below the statements made today in the course of our discussion with Mr. Courtney Brown of the CCC82 in connection with the coffee purchase agreement.
The Commodity Credit Corporation is prepared to proceed at once with the purchase of coffee in accordance with the terms of the agreement of October 3, 1942, as it has been at all times. It does not request that there be any supplementary exchange of notes between the Governments [Page 689] of Brazil and the United States which would have the effect of modifying the terms of that agreement.
As brought out by Mr. Brown in our conversation today, I am confident that the Commodity Credit Corporation has no desire to prejudice the legitimate trade interests of Brazil in disposing of such coffee as it may acquire pursuant to the agreement of October 3, 1942. This point was clearly established in a telegram sent by the Commodity Credit Corporation through the State Department to Rio de Janeiro on February 27, 1943, reading textually as follows:
“There is no objection to an exchange of letters between the Embassy and the Foreign Minister to the effect that this Government will advise and discuss with Brazilian authorities at the appropriate time as to plans which they may wish to undertake for the disposal of coffee in any way to any destination they may deem advisable. As previously advised, in formulating such plans, sympathetic consideration will be given the Brazilian economic interests. If in such a discussion it develops that we have failed to give due weight to the Brazilian interests, it would be our intention to reconsider any such proposal. We do not interpret the Brazilian request to mean that we are to commit ourselves to accept Brazilian views as a prerequisite to disposing of coffee.”
I hope that the foregoing statements will serve to dispel some of the fears and misunderstandings which appear to have arisen. Please let me have the benefit of your views as to what further clarifications, if any, are necessary or desirable before the CCC proceeds to carry out its part of the coffee purchase agreement.
With warm personal regards, believe me,
Sincerely yours,