Foreign Relations of the United States, Diplomatic Papers, 1945, General: The United Nations, Volume I

500.CC/4–545: Telegram

The Acting Secretary of State to the Ambassador in France (Caffery)

Washington, April 5, 1945—6 p.m.

1359. This Government on March 8 informed London, Moscow and Chungking¹⁶ that we considered it would be definitely in the interests of the contemplated world organization were France, at some time prior to the convening of the San Francisco Conference, to decide to become a sponsor on the same basis as the other sponsoring nations. We also said that we hoped that continued study by the Provisional Government of the French Republic would lead it to decide upon this course and that we assumed that under the decisions arrived at during the Yalta Conference the door continued to remain open for France in this manner to become one of the sponsoring nations. We said further that we felt we should be in a position to assure France of the foregoing and to make that assurance public.

On March 9 we received word that the Chinese Government concurred with this statement.¹⁸ On March 13 the Soviet Government informed us¹⁹ that it agreed that French participation in the sponsoring of the invitations to the San Francisco Conference is even now desirable on the same basis as the four other sponsoring powers since this would undoubtedly be in the interests of the international organization. The Soviet Government said it had no objections either to giving the French Government further opportunity to study this question in order to adopt a positive decision prior to the convening of the Conference, or to our giving an assurance to the French Government in this respect.

On March 14 the British Government informed us²⁰ that it is in favor of the step proposed by us. Eden said that a great deal would depend on timing and approach and suggested that Winant speak first to Massigli, leaving it to Massigli to prepare ground in Paris before the matter was taken up there. We informed London on March 19²¹ that after carefully considering Eden’s suggestion we felt that it would be preferable to have you take the matter up directly with Bidault^21a since you had been handling this question with the Foreign Office from the beginning. We also said that, if France is to act as sponsor, it would be advisable to have her become a party to preparations as soon as possible, and that therefore a prompt approach on the matter is considered desirable. On March 21 London informed us²² that our suggested procedure was acceptable to Eden.

In the meantime, reports from Paris indicated that the Provisional Government was preparing to communicate to the sponsoring governments its comments on the Dumbarton Oaks Proposals with recommendations for numerous amendments, and these were transmitted to this Government officially on March 21.²³ These comments and amendments have since received widespread publicity.

From our review and study of the proposed French amendments, we assume that their character—coupled with the publicity given to them—precludes the Provisional Government’s becoming a sponsor of the San Francisco Conference on the same basis as the other sponsoring governments, i.e., as stated in the invitations, that the Conference consider as affording a basis for such a charter the proposals for the establishment of a general international organization, which were made public last October as a result of the Dumbarton Oaks Conference, and which have been supplemented by the provisions covering the voting procedure in the Security Council as agreed to at the Crimea Conference.

The Department desires that you take advantage of an early and convenient opportunity to take this matter up informally with Bidault, conveying to him orally the substance of the foregoing. As indicated above, all of the sponsoring governments would be glad to have the Provisional Government of the French Republic join in sponsoring the San Francisco Conference on the same basis as the other sponsoring nations and as stated in the last sentence of the preceding paragraph. If, however, the Provisional Government feels that it can not join in sponsoring the Conference on this basis, you should express appropriate regrets.

This telegram is sent to Paris as No. 1359. It is also being repeated to London as No. 2649, Moscow as No. 796, and Chungking as No. 551, and these latter three Amembassies are hereby instructed to convey the substance of this communication to the Foreign Ministers of the Governments to which they are accredited with the additional note that they will be subsequently advised of the reactions of the French Provisional Government to this informal communication.

Acheson

16. Telegram 1767, March 8, 1 p.m., to London, repeated to Moscow and Chungking, not printed.
18. Telegram 390, March 9, 5 p.m., not printed.
19. Telegram 734, March 13, 7 p.m., not printed.
20. Telegram 2634, March 14, 8 p.m., not printed.
21. Telegram 2133, March 19, midnight, not printed.
22. Georges Bidault, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Provisional Government of France.
22. Telegram 2901, March 21, noon, not printed.
23. Despatch 1398, March 21, transmitting the French text of the French note of March 21 with accompanying proposed amendments, not printed. For English text, see doc. 2, G/7 (o), March 21, in UNCIO Documents, vol. 3, p. 376.