800.796/593: Telegram
The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant) to the Secretary of State
[Received 7:31 p.m.]
1914. It is suggested that the Department consider the following:
- 1.
- Agreement by the Department to British proposal for preliminary aviation conferences in North Africa and to their list of countries, if as we understand, the Dutch and Belgians were included in [Page 407] the telegram which we hear went to the British Embassy in Washington on Monday.
- 2.
- That we suggest and announce that continuing exploratory conversations be held either on a bi-lateral or a multi-lateral basis, or both with other interested United Nations and possibly with some neutrals.
- 3.
- That the British agree to support whatever site we pick for the main conference, as a condition to our agreeing to the North African talks.
Yielding on minor points such as the locale and general participation of the preliminary conference, will undoubtedly put us in a better position to insist on essentials.
We are afraid if we do not agree to the exploratory conference in North Africa, decision on the civil air problem will be delayed; the United States will slowly lose the initiative and risk the possibility of being faced, when the general conference opens, with a bloc consisting of some of the Europeans and some of the Dominions, under British guidance. I think it is to our advantage to arrest a trend beginning to be discernible towards a more and more restricted and cautious outlook on civil aviation on the part of the British. They quite naturally wish to convert the Dominions and at least the smaller European countries to this view. I am quite sure that now our influence can be controlling, but that indecision on our part will progressively weaken our advantage.