845.515/574
The Counselor of the British Embassy (Wright) to Mr. Calvin H. Oakes of the Division of Middle Eastern Affairs
Dear Mr. Oakes: I am writing to confirm the several points made in conversations which you have had with Mr. Miles of this Embassy, about the Indian silver question.
[Page 267]I note that you favour abandoning the draft agreement between my Government and yours56 in favour of an exchange of notes: such a procedure will be entirely acceptable to this Embassy.
The draft agreement, which I understand was studied and approved in principle by those concerned in the State Department, will serve to indicate what would be the substance of the exchange of notes, namely that His Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom will take the necessary steps to effect delivery to the United States Treasury of “such amounts of silver and within such a period” as is required for the implementation of the agreement which, I understand, will be signed immediately between your Government and the Government of India.
As soon as we have word that the agreement between the Foreign Economic Administration and the Government of India has been signed, His Majesty’s Ambassador will be very happy to address a note to Mr. Hull on these lines, and on receipt of Mr. Hull’s acknowledgment it will be understood that the exchange of notes puts on record my Government’s obligation to restore to the United States Treasury any part of the silver loaned by the United States Government to the Government of India, in respect of which the latter Government may fail to meet its obligation.
Yours sincerely,
- This refers to a draft agreement on the subject submitted by the British Embassy to the Department on May 27, not printed.↩