Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, The Conference of Berlin (The Potsdam Conference), 1945, Volume I

Department of the Army Files

No. 540
The Secretary of War (Stimson) to the Secretary of State

secret

[Washington,] 19 June 1945.

Dear Mr. Secretary: This acknowledges receipt of [a] letter of 9 June 1945 from Mr. James A. Maxwell to General E. S. Greenbaum¹ inclosing a draft of the proposed cable from the President to the Prime Minister² in response to the Prime Minister’s cable of May 28,³ and requesting comment on this draft.

Yesterday I received from the Director of War Mobilization and Reconversion a letter dated 13 June 1945, copy of which is attached. The proposed cable appears to the War Department to be consistent with the direction contained in that letter. If the cable is to be sent, it is believed that its accuracy would be improved by making the second sentence read as follows:

“We intend to furnish lend-lease during the Japanese War in accordance with the general policy discussed between you and President Roosevelt at Quebec on September 14, 1944, and that was the basis for the discussions between American and British representatives in Washington in October and November 1944 in regard to lend-lease requirements for the first year following the defeat of Germany.”

It should be noted, however, that the War Department’s requests for appropriations for military lend-lease were arrived at, and have been presented to the Congress, under policies considered appropriate by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which contemplate, among other things, the furnishing by the War Department of only those materials which are not available to, and cannot otherwise be provided by, the British Empire on the premise that the Empire will maintain its forces for the war against Japan to the fullest possible extent from its own stocks and production.

This policy is not in accord with the implications of the proposed cable. It may be necessary, therefore, for the War Department to request the Congress for funds for the specific purpose of carrying out the direction contained in the letter of 13 June 1945.

Sincerely yours,

Henry L. Stimson

[Enclosure]

The Director of War Mobilization and Reconversion (Vinson) to the Secretary of War (Stimson)

secret

Washington, June 13, 1945.

My Dear Mr. Secretary: Your letter of May 15, 1945,⁴ with reference to the requirements of the British Empire for war materiel for the period following VE–Day, was the subject of a discussion held in my office on June 4, 1945, with Under Secretary Patterson, Mr. Crowley, Mr. Clayton and me.

It was agreed that the tentative principles enunciated in your letter⁵ were not broad enough to cover the understanding reached between the late President and the Prime Minister at Quebec.

In general, it was agreed that, in accordance with those understandings, lend-lease should be furnished on a basis which would permit proportional and equitable reconversion in the United Kingdom. It was further agreed that the requirements estimated in the meetings held in October and November 1944 should be accepted as the basis for present requirements. Such estimates, however, are always subject to change in the light of strategic demands and supply considerations.

I assume, of course, that the War Department’s budget requests appropriations adequate to fulfill these commitments.

Sincerely yours,

Fred M. Vinson

1. Not printed.

2. The draft referred to reads as follows (Department of the Army Files):

   “I have gone into the question that you raise in your message of May 28 in regard to lend-lease during the Japanese War. We intend to furnish lend-lease during the Japanese War in accordance with the understanding reached between you and President Roosevelt at Quebec on September 14, 1944, and that was the basis for the discussions between American and British representatives in Washington in October and November 1944 in regard to lend-lease requirements for the first year following the defeat of Germany. In the light of the anticipated war strategy lend-lease will be furnished on the [a?] basis that will permit a partial and equitable reconversion in the United Kingdom, and plans for reconversion [sic] have been worked out here for your representatives on the CPRB to make available full information on the British reconversion program to American officials responsible for the administration of lend-lease.

   “You, of course, realize that the policy I have indicated does not necessarily mean that either the military or the non-military program for the coming year will be equal to the lend-lease requirements as estimated in the meetings of last October and November. Those estimates were subject to changing strategic demands as well as to supply considerations and considerations of procurement and allocation, and to the provision of the necessary funds by Congress. I have requested Congress to appropriate funds that will make possible lend-lease deliveries to the British Commonwealth in accord with the spirit of these earlier understandings, and I am confident that lend-lease will continue to be a powerful weapon in bringing the war to a speedy and victorious conclusion.”

3. See document No. 537, footnote 5.
4. Not printed as a whole. Cf. footnote 5, infra.
5. The reference is to the following passage in Stimson’s letter of May 15 (Department of the Army Files): “… it appears to me desirable that materiel already in the possession or control of the British Empire be employed to the maximum possible extent in satisfaction of its requirements and that remaining requirements which may be referred to the War Department be considered for supply from combat serviceable stocks or new production only if such requirements (1) appear necessary in order to carry out our agreed strategy, (2) are beyond the supply capabilities of the British Empire, and (3) can be obtained only from United States sources.”