835.01/8–1244
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in Mexico (Messersmith)
Dear Mr. Ambassador: I refer to your letter of August 4,76 setting forth the reasons why you thought it would not be possible for Dr. Padilla to issue a public statement with respect to Mexico’s position on the Argentine issue at the time when we issued our statement77 which was followed by supporting statements of the Governments of Brazil, Peru, Venezuela, Colombia, Cuba, and others.
Upon receipt of your letter I talked the matter over with Mr. Stettinius and with my full approval he despatched to you his confidential telegram no. 1502 of August 11, 6 p.m.76 You know that the last thing we would wish to do would be to ask our good friend, Dr. Padilla, to do anything which might in any way be contrary to his wishes or better judgment. On the other hand, from his conversations with me during his visit here and the reports which you have sent me, I have had the clear impression that he fully recognizes the [Page 345] seriousness of Argentina’s desertion and of the Fascist movement in this Hemisphere and that we have had his wholehearted support in the stand we have taken jointly with the other American republics and the other members of the United Nations. Therefore, it is not readily understandable to me why Dr. Padilla should hesitate to go along with the rest of us in making a statement which would be completely in accord with the joint effort of the American republics to deal with this dangerous situation.
I fear that if you do not discuss this question with Padilla, we may appear to acquiesce in Mexico’s silence. We must not under any circumstances do that. I do not mean to suggest that we would be offended by a Mexican refusal to state its position publicly. We should, however, like to have our views squarely on record and as stated in Mr. Stettinius’ telegram under reference, I do feel that in all sincerity and with complete reliance upon your close personal relationship with Dr. Padilla, you can approach him along the lines indicated and at the same time assure him that without presuming in any way to interfere in the course of action that he or the Mexican Government may wish to pursue, it would be most helpful if some statement could be issued publicly aligning Mexico with the other American republics.
Any statement would, I presume, be issued in the name of his Government and would not necessarily represent his personal viewpoint.
I believe that you will agree that Dr. Padilla’s thoughts, as summarized in your personal and confidential letter of August 12, 1944,78 demonstrate that he is keenly aware of the importance of making our common stand clear beyond any shadow of doubt at this critical time.
Sincerely yours,