Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, 1944, General, Volume I

740.00119 European Advisory Commission/12–1444: Telegram

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

London, December 14, 1944—8 p.m.
[Received December 15—7:30 a.m.]

11080. Comea 135. In accordance with a recent decision⁷³ of the European Advisory Commission, invitations⁷⁴ were issued yesterday, under date of December 12, B.I. [by?] Gousev as Chairman to the Governments of Belgium, Netherlands, Norway, Luxembourg, Greece and Czechoslovakia, for their representatives to meet with a committee of the Commission in order to receive information about the German surrender instrument and to discuss matters of special concern to their Governments in connection with the surrender instrument. The committee will hand to each representative individually a summary of the instrument which has been approved by the EAC and will discuss with him at later meetings any questions connected with the surrender instrument.

The Yugoslav Government is not included in the invitation as it has not replied to the letter of July 25 addressed to it by the EAC. The Polish Government is not included since the Soviet representative is instructed to refuse to take part in any dealings of the EAC with it. The United Kingdom Government is considering whether it would wish to consult the Polish Government either separately, or possibly in cooperation with the United States and France, regarding the surrender instrument. It is doubtful that such separate consultation is feasible since all members of the EAC are pledged not to disclose information and documents of the EAC to an outside government without the consent of all the representatives on the EAC.⁷⁵

Winant

73. On December 7, 1944, the European Advisory Commission agreed to establish an Allied Consultation Committee to conduct discussions with representatives of the European Allied Governments. The Committee met for the first time on December 18, 1944, and met for the first time with representatives of the European Allied Governments on January 11, 1945.
74. Copy of letter of invitation transmitted to the Department as enclosure to despatch 19864, December 14, from London; neither printed.
75. In his telegram 11335, Comea 137, December 21, 6 p.m., Ambassador Winant reported that Strang had informed him and Gousev that the British Government would not inform the Polish Government of the contents of the German surrender instrument or consult it regarding this subject (740.00119 EAC/12–2144).