711.53/42: Telegram
The Minister in Portugal (Norweb) to the Secretary of State
[Received 6:18 p.m.]
1581. With Salazar’s agreement to the survey of Santa Maria and the commencing of construction on the second airfield, we have achieved our immediate objective and can go ahead with this work despite other problems which are now pending.
[Page 28]Salazar purposely left hanging the question of the eventual use of this field by the Allies obviously intending to hold it as a bargaining weapon on wolfram. However, I do not foresee any serious difficulties in obtaining the use of the field once construction has been sufficiently advanced since:
- (a)
- Should the tempo of our campaign in the Far East accelerate Salazar would be forced to make an early decision as regards his participation in the liberation of Timor which is inexorably linked with the use of the second field. I was encouraged by his statements that he could not foresee any improvement in Portuguese-Japanese relations which to his mind were very similar to those of the United States and Great Britain with Japan prior to Pearl Harbor and that the honor and dignity of Portugal in history required her participation in the reconquest of Timor action.
- (b)
- The fulfillment of the now impending developments in the European Theater which would relieve him of German pressure. As was reported in my 2906, December 260 he has expressed willingness to grant us facilities in the Azores should a change in the military situation decrease the danger to Portugal from Germany.
- (c)
- His attitude would be favorably influenced as a result of the staff talks anticipated in the Department’s 1443, May 21.
- (d)
- He is at least partially committed to our use of the field thru his expressed disposition to discuss rentals et cetera.
In our conversation he stated that in the past he had tried to separate discussions of political and economic matters, although he did not have the impression that British and American thinking was along the same lines. If he found that his method did not produce satisfactory results, he might be forced to revise it in view of the best interests of Portugal. The implication of this remark was that he was prepared to use the same tactics which he accused us of using and would tie in wolfram with the question of the use of the second field.
I shall inform the British Ambassador of my conversation with Salazar but will make no mention of wolfram. I shall, however, point out that Salazar had not forgotten the expressed British desire that we be given the use of a second field in the Azores.
It was my impression that Salazar had finally come to the decision, perhaps as a result of our stand on wolfram, that he could no longer delay in making some concessions. This initial one resulted from his recognition of the urgent importance of a second field to the war in the Far East and from his special interest in that theatre. He left me with the clear impression that once the field is completed, a satisfactory agreement could be made as to its use.
Regarding the technical arrangements for the survey and the construction of the fields Salazar emphasized that he wished to preserve [Page 29] the Portuguese character of the undertaking at least at the outset and that payment for the construction of the field would be made by Portugal. He would send a Portuguese delegation to handle the problems of expropriation land, rehousing, et cetera, and would prepare a budget covering these items as well as construction costs. It would not be necessary, however, to delay work on the field pending the completion of this budget.
While certain permanent installations would be required for the post-war use of the field he realized that there would have to be a number of temporary installations which of course would be for our account. With regard to the actual survey and construction this would largely be done by Pan-American on whom he was calling for “technical assistance” the implication being that any assistance which the American Government wished to give would have to be under Panair guise. The question of contractual and financial arrangements will be left for Panair to work out with Portuguese delegation.
Sent Department; to London as 241; to Madrid by courier.