835.34/834
The Secretary of State to the Secretary of the Navy (Forrestal)
My Dear Mr. Secretary: Reference is made to your letter of June 310 recommending that the United States policy toward the present Argentine regime be re-examined with a view to correcting certain apparent inconsistencies with respect to the shipment of maintenance equipment and repair parts to the Argentine armed forces.
The matter in question has received the careful attention of this Department, and as the result of an exchange of views with the War Department steps have now been taken to terminate the shipment of material for the Argentine army air forces and to cancel the licenses covering the particular items mentioned in your letter. There are enclosed for your information a copy of the Department’s letter to the Secretary of War with a copy of its letter to the Foreign Economic Administration.11
This Department has recently received a report from the American Embassy at Buenos Aires dated July 8, 1944, from which it would appear that a considerable amount of maintenance and repair parts as well as other material for the Argentine Navy has arrived in Buenos Aires during the past six months. A copy of this report is enclosed.10
As indicated in your letter under reference, the Acting Secretary of the Navy stated in his letter of January 18, 1944,10 that appropriate steps were being taken to insure that shipments of such material to the Argentine Navy would not be approved. In view of the desirability of withholding all shipments of parts and other material to the armed forces of Argentina under existing conditions, the comments of the Navy Department with respect to the reported shipments to the Argentine Navy during the past six months would be appreciated.
Sincerely yours,