Office of the Historian

740.00119 European Advisory Commission/9–144: Telegram

The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant) to the Secretary of State

London, September 1, 1944—8 p.m.
[Received September 1—7:25 p.m.]

7138. Comea 79. This afternoon Sir William Strang called on me and left a letter dated August 31 stating the British position on acceptance of the draft instrument of unconditional surrender of Germany. The delay in making reply to the recommendations of the European Advisory Commission, I know was due to their consulting with the Dominion Governments.

After reading the letter, I told Strang that as I understood it, the British acceptance of the text was a conditional acceptance. Strang argued that in paragraph 2 of the letter (paragraph 1 of my paraphrase), there was an acceptance of the terms but that from the British point of view, they still might be subject to amendment after consideration of the views expressed by the other Allied Governments. I also asked him what was meant by the phrase in paragraph (d) “without prejudice to France’s special position”. Strang told me that that was intended to put France in a more favored position and that his Government was going to support the claims advanced by the French in their reply of August 2252 to my letter of July 2553 as reported in my telegram 6953, August 26, 7 p.m. (Comea 77)54 and my despatch 17762, August 29,55 Paraphrase of Strang’s letter of August 31 follows omitting introductory first paragraph:56

1.
United Kingdom Government approve draft instrument and assent to understanding with respect to article 2 (b) as recommended in section 2 of Commission’s report.
2.
United Kingdom Government wish to make their approval of the draft terms subject to an understanding along following lines:
(a)
Instrument to be open to reconsideration as a result of replies made by European Allied authorities or Governments to EAC chairman’s letter of July 25;
(b)
Instrument’s text to be communicated at earliest convenient date to United Nations Governments principally concerned, latter to [Page 330] be invited to concur in the terms and to authorize representatives of the three powers’ Supreme Commands to accept Germany’s unconditional surrender on their behalf; the other United Nations Governments to be informed regarding the terms at appropriate moment prior to Germany’s surrender;
(c)
With respect to the exercise of the powers provided for under article 12 of surrender instrument, the three Governments to make appropriate provision for consulting with other members of United Nations as occasion requires.
(d)
The above to be without prejudice to France’s special position. (End paraphrase.)

Winant
  1. For text of the letter of August 22, from the Chargé of the Delegation of the French Committee of National Liberation in London to the American Ambassador in the United Kingdom, see p. 86.↩
  2. See the European Advisory Commission’s letter of July 25 inviting nine interested European Allied countries to submit written comments on surrender terms for Germany, p. 63.↩
  3. Not printed; it transmitted a summary of the letter of August 22 cited in footnote 52, above.↩
  4. Not printed.↩
  5. The complete text of this letter was transmitted to the Department by Ambassador Winant in his despatch 17832, September 2; neither printed.↩