740.00119 EAC/8–444
Memorandum by the Under Secretary of State (Stettinius) to the Secretary of State
The Secretary: This morning I received two messages from the President—one on the subject of the surrender terms and the other one on the zones of occupation.11
Surrender Terms
The President stated he did not wish to approve formally the surrender instrument until he had reviewed the text once more. I therefore cabled him the text of the terms themselves and forwarded by pouch a copy of the formal recommendation of the European Advisory Commission covering the Minutes of the July 25 meeting, the report of the Commission, the text of the terms, and the letters to the Foreign Ministers of the Governments in exile.
Zones of Occupation
In his message on the zones, the President requests us to inform Ambassador Winant that he is awaiting an agreement from the Prime Minister that American troops will police northwest Germany and not Southern Europe. He states that he is unable to understand why the Russians refuse to carry on further discussions inasmuch as the Soviet Zone is agreed upon. He stresses again the desirability of having Hamburg, Bremen and ports in the Netherlands for our use.
I immediately cabled Ambassador Harriman asking him to urge the Russians to permit the continuation of discussions in the European Advisory Commission pending settlement of the zones question. I also cabled Ambassador Winant informing him that the President is awaiting the Prime Minister’s reply on the zones question and suggesting that he urge the British to have their Ambassador in Moscow associate himself with Harriman in requesting the continuation of discussions.
I then wired the President advising him of the action taken and pointed out that we also failed to understand the insistence of the Russians on this point.
For your information I enclose herewith copies of the messages from the President and of the cables to the President and to Ambassadors Harriman and Winant on the zones.11a