740.00112 European War 1939/10618: Telegram
The Minister in Sweden (Johnson) to the Secretary of State
[Received April 23—3:10 a.m.]
1418. Immediately after leaving Foreign Minister Günther (see my 1417 April 22, 10 p.m.) Mallet and I went with Mr. Boheman to his office to hear his oral comments, which were substantially as follows:
He first informed us that no further licenses for export of piston rings to Germany have been issued since Legation’s representations (see my 1260, April 13, 4 p.m.26 and related correspondence). He hoped in a few days to be able to give a definite assurance that there will be no licenses issued for exports in future.
Mr. Boheman said that as far as Foreign Office is informed SKF is exploring all possibilities to meet to some extent our wishes expressed in aide-mémoire of April 13. He cannot say anything further at present nor say exactly when these results will be known; he said that it is possible that he may not be able to say anything but that we can see the results in fact. He remarked that means of doing anything on part of company have been rendered more difficult by extensive publicity which ball bearing question has had. He likewise informed us that only commissions now placed with SKF for ball bearings of a special type for aircraft are two orders totaling 1,300,000 kronor given by Hungary and Rumania. These orders will not be carried out. He reiterated what he had told me previously and which I have reported, that Germans are exerting constant pressure on SKF to accept orders for special types of aircraft bearings, in fact having recently offered to give Sweden 150 latest model Focke-Wulf planes as an inducement. This offer was refused and Boheman stated categorically that no orders for similar bearings from Germany will be accepted. He said that there is a special kind of ball bearing which Swedes believe is used by Germans for tank production. An order totaling 1,300,000 kronor had been placed by Germans for this type of bearing. Most of this order has been delivered, a small residue remaining. No new orders will be accepted for this type of bearing. Boheman told me that it was not his order that he made reference [Page 520] when I talked to him the other day (see my 1368, April 20, 3 p.m.) SKF will not deliver in future to Germany any ball bearings except those of standard types. I asked Mr. Boheman if some of these so-called standard bearings were not bearings which could be used in aircraft. Mr. Boheman said that he could not guarantee that some would not be but he could only say that none of these bearings now sent by SKF to Germany would be accepted by Swedish aircraft industry for their planes; that type of bearings produced for Swedish aircraft industry are of a much higher quality than those sent to Germany, with a greater “tolerance”; that none of this superior type has been exported to Germany; that the ball bearings sent to England are of a higher quality than those sent to Germany. Both British Minister and I mentioned that we had information that German aircraft which had come into our possession bore bearings which our authorities were confident they had been made in Sweden. Mr. Boheman said that SKF experts had assured him that ball bearings now made in Germany bear SKF mark only and that marks previously used on German produced ball bearings which indicated Germany as point of origin are no longer placed on those bearings. He said that these SKF experts assure him that it is impossible to tell whether ball bearings now manufactured in Germany are produced there or in Sweden. Boheman also said that SKF experts had informed him that to best of their knowledge less than 3% of total ball bearing requirements of Germany before extensive bombings came from Sweden. This figure is now between 6 to 8% which indicates that more than half of German ballbearing industry has been put out of action. Boheman says that this information comes from SKF personnel in Germany and that company here is greatly worried lest it come to ears of Germans that this information has leaked out. They would take immediate reprisals on SKF personnel. Boheman expressed his willingness and willingness of SKF for any British or American ballbearing expert to discuss these matters directly with SKF officials. Mallet suggested that Waring was fully competent to do so.
I think both Mr. Günther and Boheman feel that Sweden has given only reply possible from their point of view but that they have not closed door through SKF. Mallet and I expressed opinion that SKF could take action which would go far toward meeting our views and Boheman was rather reticent in his reaction. He said that Government could not take any action to stop SKF production; that such action would be impossible; and furthermore that we could not expect that SKF would stop entirely its exports to Germany under terms of Swedish-German agreement. I then inquired whether Government would interfere if we could come to some sort of understanding with SKF. He made no reply to this question and Mallet made remark [Page 521] that perhaps it was unfair to expect Mr. Boheman to answer that question now. Boheman, of course, is fully informed of attempts through Wallenberg to start something with SKF. I hope it will be possible for our Government and British to move slowly in reaction to Swedish reply and allow possibilities of some more effective action directly with SKF to be tested out.
My 320, April 22, 10 p.m. repeats this to London.
- Not printed.↩