800.85/8–2344: Telegram
The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant) to the Secretary of State
[Received August 23—2:30 p.m.]
6821. For Berle and Morse, WSA. Riefler,61 Brown of MEA and Allison conferred on Monday62 with Dingle Foot of MEW,63 Weston of MWT and a Foreign Office representative on the question of approach to Swedes to secure their accession to Agreement on Principles or other arrangement for control of their ships, and Department’s 6502 of August 16.
While agreeing to necessity of controlling Swedish shipping, Riefler and Foot are still seriously concerned that invitation to accede to agreement or any other similar arrangement would involve us in at least a moral commitment to allow Swedes use of enough of their ships to lift their minimum requirements, particularly those procured by them in countries not parties to the agreement, e.g. Argentina. They point out that supplies of this type would not be under Combined Board or US/UK control.
MWT and MEA stress absolute necessity of having Swedish ships under control the moment the Baltic is clear. They feel that our Governments committed themselves at the Shipping Conference to take steps to accomplish this control as soon as possible. It could be accomplished by actual Swedish accession to the agreement on principles, or by a tripartite agreement with US and UK, which could come into effect immediately and be merged into the United Maritime Authority when it begins to function. If, however, neither of these steps is deemed desirable because of considerations advanced by Riefler and Foot, MWT and MEA believe that it will be essential for the US and UK Governments to give a firm undertaking to other signatory governments that Swedish shipping will be kept under absolute control by use of US and UK ship warrant mechanisms, and that this control will be maintained even after general cessation of hostilities with Germany. Such a decision would presumably have to be made by the State Department and Foreign Office at a high level.
[Page 684]In accordance with Department’s instructions, it was agreed that we would not take any immediate action, but would confer again not later than August 31st, by which time the Swedes may have replied to the joint démarche which has been made to them.64
We would appreciate your further instructions as soon as possible.
- Winfield Riefler, Director of the Economic Warfare Division (EWD), American Embassy at London, with rank of Minister.↩
- August 21.↩
- Dingle M. Foot, Parliamentary Secretary, British Ministry of Economic Warfare.↩
- For the joint démarche, dated August 24, see vol. iv, p. 626.↩