President Roosevelt to the Under Secretary of State (Stettinius)94
Neither the Prime Minister nor I are inclined to approve the proposed amendment.
My thought has been that this amendment or a general reference to the subject should be mentioned in the agreement as having been discussed but without reaching any agreement or decision, thus leaving it up to the meeting of the United Nations.
Mr. Churchill, on the other hand, is afraid that this procedure will be unacceptable to the Russians, as they would know that they would be overwhelmingly defeated in a United Nations’ meeting and that they would get sore and try to take it out on all of us on some other point.
[Page 815]That is about the only information I can give you. Cadogan will return Monday, I think, and he can give you any further news.
I think we should keep on trying but if we cannot agree on this or any other point, I am inclined to favor either not mentioning disagreement or putting disagreements under a general statement that certain points have not been agreed on. I am still greatly in favor of a reference to the United Nations for discussion as soon as possible.
- Copy of telegram obtained from the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, N.Y. Message received in the White House Map Room on the night of September 15, from President Roosevelt at Quebec.↩