Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, 1944, General: Economic and Social Matters, Volume II

103.9164: Telegram

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

Washington, October 2, 1944.

8059. SD 4060. To Reed for Chubb from Land by Morse. The following memorandum has been agreed with visiting member of MWT and represents our joint views. Suggest you consult Meyer who can give any additional information required about Anglo-American overall tanker programing machinery and can explain the methods of coordination between Government agencies and industry. Please supply copy to Ministry of War Transport.

1. The U.M.E.B. is not concerned with supply questions and will not set up any new machinery for determining allocations of oil or places of shipment from which supplies of a particular country shall be met. The employment of tankers must however be determined in accordance with authorized programs of oil supplies. It is essential therefore, that the present system of ascertaining and coordinating oil requirements shall continue and that the existing Anglo-U.S. machinery for overall planning and consultation remain untouched. For example, the six monthly review of the oil and tanker position should be continued and the A.T.C.C.’s^96a in Washington and London should remain in existence to watch over the efficient operation of tanker tonnage and to make recommendation to the agencies concerned including the Army and Navy.

2. The requirements of the liberated countries will have to be taken into account in oil and tanker programing and the authorized programs will fix the quantities to be made available and the sources of supply. In fact, the requirements for the liberated countries are included in the present overall survey now being made. It may be that the liberated countries within the limits of the authorized program will wish to direct control over their oil imports and they will also probably wish to arrange a suitable procedure for reception and distribution within their own countries. It is recommended that they follow the practice which has been adopted in other areas to coordinate supply programs and for this purpose set up industry committees or analagous bodies, which would formulate detailed proposals for shipping their requirements within the authorized program e.g. advising on ports of discharge, stocks and desired replenishments, having regard to ullage[,] local needs, etc. The programing of supplies to liberated countries could then be fitted into the overall programing machinery without difficulty as explained later.

3. The oil requirements of ex-enemy territories in Europe will be formulated through the Control Commission and brought into the U.M.E.B. picture if necessary through the existing U.S. and British machinery for allocating supplies in the overall program.

4. Supplies becoming available from ex-enemy territories would be brought into the overall program and would not be the direct concern of U.M.A., except in so far as the changes affected the employment of tankers. Similarly, if Russia becomes a source of oil for export during the U.M.A. period, the overall program will be adjusted, after the disposition of the oil has been agreed between the three Governments.

5. The present division of the world into two spheres of programing responsibility, one controlled from Washington and one from London, will continue and will determine the respective spheres of direct responsibility of the two branches of the U.M.E.B. With the defeat of Germany, continental Europe will come within the area of London responsibility.

6. Within the area of the two branches of the executive board, the existing machinery will be used to coordinate short term requirements with the authorized long term program.

7. The coordination of the short term program falling within the purview of the existing organizations (e.g. in London the Tanker Advisory Committee) and the short term programs for the liberated countries must depend on the form of control which the Governments of those countries wish to adopt, but it is essential that a fully coordinated supply program be prepared which would be the basis for the work of U.M.E.B. in making the tankers of contracting Governments available to meet it.

8. In the two branches of U.M.E.B., a tanker allocation committee representative of the four Governments on U.M.E.B. should be established, bringing into consultation associate members of U.M.E.B. in matters affecting their interests.

9. It will be necessary to bring before the Tanker Allocation Committees periodically as may be convenient, an overall statement of the oil and tanker plans affecting their respective areas resulting from the Anglo-U.S. consultations. These statements would normally be based on the periodical surveys of the oil and tanker position and the studies arising therefrom.

10. The employment of any tankers under the control of contracting Governments is a matter for determination by U.M.E.B. acting through the appropriate branch allocation committee and the main function of the branch committee will be to exercise a general supervision over the allocation of tankers within the general framework. Consultation with other Governments must be a reality and they must be given an opportunity to make proposals as to the disposition of tonnage under their control. For this purpose, it is proposed that consultation should take place at staff level in Washington between WSA and the tanker experts of other Governments and in London between the Ministry of War Transport and such tanker experts when the provisional supply program is under consideration. It will not be possible to present the branch allocation committee with a cut and dried tanker allocation plan covering a considerable period ahead, but a provisional program of allocations could be agreed between WSA or MWT and the staff experts of other Governments at appropriate intervals and with effective cooperation at staff level with the other Governments, the branch tanker allocation committee might confine itself to general supervision of the proposals, giving authority for such day-to-day adjustments as flexibility may demand.

11. France is not at present a contracting Government and will not be represented in the U.M.E.B. machinery until she becomes one. Until then, the disposal of French tankers and the provision of other flag tankers will be for separate agreement, between the USA, the UK and the French Governments through the Tripartite Allocation Committee set up under the March agreement. Any such arrangement will be sponsored before U.M.E.B. by W.S.A. and the Ministry of War Transport.

12. All tanker tonnage will be under requisition. Each Government will make use so far as practicable of tonnage under its own flag for oil destined for its area. It will be for each contracting Government to decide whether it charters this tonnage to users in which case charters will be on a voyage basis. It is undesirable that tankers should be time chartered to commercial users.

13. The U.S. and British Governments may wish to consider whether they should time charter some tonnage on direct charter for voyage chartering to users. This may be necessary to maintain the present flexibility in the use of tonnage. Other European allied tonnage made available for other countries should be chartered direct between the requisitioning Government and the users of the tonnage on a voyage basis, and it is probable that the Governments of importing companies will work through the oil companies.

14. The machinery for controlling all tanker voyage rates under U.M.E.B. is under consideration. These rates should also apply to tankers carrying supplies to the country to which they belong.

15. If, in your judgment, it would be more expeditious and appropriate to have tanker allocations considered by Planning Committee as a whole, we have no objections. [Land.]

Hull

1. Allied Tanker Coordinating Committee.