800.796/592
The Department of State to the British Embassy
Memorandum
The Secretary of State was glad to receive the British Embassy’s memorandum of February 21 setting forth certain views of the British Government in regard to discussions on post-war civil aviation and enclosing a statement in the form of the possible agenda for such discussions.
The United States Government notes that His Majesty’s Government appears in agreement that there are obvious advantages to a United Nations Conference within the near future, and assumes that such a meeting was contemplated by the phrase “full international conference” in the memorandum under reference. It is therefore believed that steps should first be taken looking to exchanges of views between certain countries for the purpose of bringing about such a United Nations Civil Aviation Conference at an early date to formulate a program to which the United Nations would if possible agree. Later the adherence of neutral governments would also be invited, or arrangements made for a full international conference.
The United States Government, in inviting the British and the Canadian Governments to exchange views with it at an early date in Washington, had the foregoing procedure in mind. The Government of the U.S.S.R. was informed of the invitation which had been extended to the British and the Canadian Governments and was advised that the United States Government would be glad to engage in a similar exchange of views with representatives of the Soviet Government at the convenience of the latter. No reply has as yet been received from the Soviet Government, and it is proposed to send a further message to that Government in due course inquiring whether the Soviet authorities feel that they will be in a position at an early date to have such an exchange of views in Washington with representatives of the United States Government. While great importance [Page 388] is attached to having such an exchange of views on civil aviation with the Soviet Government at an early date, the United States Government is not disposed unduly to press the Soviet Government to engage in such conversations at this time if for any reason that Government finds it inconvenient.
An invitation is also being extended to the Chinese Government to take part in an informal exchange of views on civil air transport in Washington with representatives of the Government of the United States.
The proposed exploratory conversations in Washington with representatives of the British and the Canadian Governments have therefore been visualized as part, probably the first, of a series of conversations with a number of other governments on civil air transport with the view to discussing this subject on broad principles of policy. It is hoped that understandings might be reached between these governments serving as a basis for future air relations, and paving the way to a United Nations Civil Aviation Conference later in the year, perhaps before the end of next summer.
The United States Government now proposes that the conversations with representatives of the United Kingdom Government and the Canadian Government in Washington take place as bilateral conversations between representatives of this Government on the one hand and representatives of the other two Governments, respectively, on the other. It is expected that the conversations will take place at approximately the same time. It is hoped that the Soviet and Chinese Governments will be agreeable to engaging in similar conversations with representatives of the United States Government at about the same time. An invitation is being extended to the Government of Brazil to engage in similar conversations in Washington. The United States Government will undertake to transmit a summary of the results of these talks to each of the other governments which have participated in such conversations.
The United States Government also proposes to extend invitations to a short list of other governments to engage in similar exchanges of views in Washington with representatives of the Government of the United States. In this list are included Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Summaries of these bilateral conversations would be transmitted to other governments which have participated in similar talks.
The purpose of the foregoing bilateral exchanges of views would be to pave the way for the holding of a United Nations Civil Aviation Conference at the earliest moment at which it appeared that there existed a sufficiently broad area of common understanding among a sizeable nucleus of countries.
[Page 389]The proposed agenda transmitted with the British Embassy’s memorandum of February 21 is receiving consideration and will be discussed with officers of the Embassy at an early date.