740.00112 European War 1939/10896: Telegram

The Ambassador in Turkey (Steinhardt) to the Secretary of State

961. Following is a translation of the draft agreement proposed by the Turkish Minister for Foreign Affairs this morning which embodies certain changes proposed by the British and ourselves and accepted by Numan:

  • “1. For the duration of the war Turkey will continue to prohibit the export of chrome ore to Germany and her allies.
  • “2. Commencing June 1, 1944 and for the duration of the war and whatever may be the commercial arrangements existing or to be concluded with Germany and her allies Turkey will take steps to maintain the exportation to those countries of the commodities enumerated in the American note of April 14, 1944, at a level which in no case will exceed 50% of the exports of each of the same commodities to the aforementioned countries during the year 1943; this annual amount shall be divided into 12 equal monthly quotas and only the quantities which have not been used during the preceding months may be added to the quotas for the following months.
  • “3. The Turkish Government agrees that in all cases in which the commodities which it proposes to order can, other things being equal, [Page 852] be furnished both by the Allies and the Axis, preference shall be given to the offers to supply these commodities from Allied sources in order that the total exports to the Axis of the commodities mentioned in the British and American notes on the subject may by this means be further reduced.
  • “4. Since the reduction specified in Article II will have an adverse effect on the supply to Turkey of the commodities necessary for her economy, the British and American Governments shall enter into negotiations with the Turkish Government with a view to determining by mutual agreement on the one hand the increase in the exports of these two countries to Turkey in order to compensate for the deficit in her imports and, on the other hand, the increase in the purchases to be made in Turkey in order to replace those purchases which would have been made by the Axis in the normal course of commercial transactions developed up to the present time.
  • “5. The Turkish Government will furnish in confidence to the American and British Governments statistics relating to commercial transactions with the Axis countries.
  • “6. The American, British and Turkish Governments reserve the right to request at any time the opening of new conversations on any question dealt with in the present note.”

Steinhardt