824.24/1022a
The Secretary of State to the Acting Director, Pan American Branch, Foreign Economic Administration (Bell)
My Dear Mr. Bell: Pursuant to the joint meeting on export control procedure governing exports to Bolivia, held on Wednesday, April 19, 1944, between officers of the Foreign Economic Administration and the Department, I am pleased to confirm herein the understanding reached:
In the interests of policy, the Department requests the Foreign Economic Administration to attempt to maintain the issuance of export licenses for goods moving to Bolivia at a rate which will permit the exports at a volume equal to, but not greater than, the volume exported to Bolivia prior to December 1943. Appreciative of the mechanical problems involved in this type of control, the Department does not expect that such a control can be rigid or mathematical, but rather must be designed to accomplish the objective within a reasonable latitude. Therefore, it is suggested that with regard to allocated, scarce, or otherwise controlled commodities, the Foreign Economic Administration proceed to license exports to Bolivia up to, but not in excess of, the allocations or licensing quotas established for that country; owing to the present shipping stringency it is improbable that exports so licensed at this time will arrive in Bolivia before sixty or ninety days. Regarding unallocated commodities it is believed that the volume involved will be small and unimportant so that the Foreign Economic Administration can grant such applications with relative freedom; should it develop, however, that such applications assume large proportions it may be necessary to re-examine this particular question with a view to limiting the volume licensed.
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