711.94114 Supplies/213: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Harriman)
1709. Please communicate to Soviet Foreign Office text of Japanese reply as set forth in Department’s 1708, (reference Department’s 1379, June 1 and previous telegrams concerning movement of relief supplies via Soviet territory for Allied nationals in Japanese custody).
United States Government is not disposed to press Soviet Government for permission for Japanese ships to enter Vladivostok. However, it would like to be able to inform the Japanese Government that this question has again been taken up with Soviet Government which has re-affirmed that it is not in a position to permit the use of that port but will permit the use of Nakhodka on continuing basis. This, of course, would mean that Petropavlovsk is not to be used as transshipping point.
Please seek the consent of the Soviet Government to conditions A, B, and C of paragraph 2, section 1, of Japanese response. It is hoped that you can obtain immediately from the Soviet authorities description of route to be followed through Soviet waters which, when combined in this Government’s reply to Japanese Government with route laid out by Allied military authorities through non-Soviet waters, will provide Japanese authorities with complete route to be followed to and from Japan and Nakhodka.
It is assumed that Soviet Government’s agreement to movement of Japanese ships to a Soviet port for this purpose implies that Soviet [Page 1181] Government will guarantee safety of Japanese ships engaged in this traffic. Definite assurances on that point would be appreciated in order that a statement to that effect may be made to the Japanese Government with reference to paragraph 4, section 2, of its response.
United States Government is prepared to reply in affirmative to those sections of the Japanese response which do not require Soviet concurrence, such as paragraphs 3, 4 (except Soviet safe conduct), 5, and 6 of section 2.
Please present this matter urgently to Soviet Government stressing the desire of the United States Government to reply to the Japanese response at the earliest possible moment. Since the Governments of the United States and Japan are now so near to an agreement on this question, it is hoped that the Soviet Government will be able to give its agreement to the points raised above, in order that the movement of these supplies may begin in the immediate future.