500.CC/2–2745: Telegram
The Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Harriman) to the Secretary of State
[Received February 27—9:40 p.m.]
570. ReEmbs 555, February 26, 10 p.m.81 and 569, February 27, 11 p.m.82 The Soviet reply to our proposals concerning the invitations to the San Francisco Conference has just now been received in the form of a memorandum handed to Kennan at the Foreign Office.
Referring to the communication which I left with Vyshinsky on February 26, the memorandum states that the Soviet Government has no objection to the position of our Government set forth therein, namely, that in view of the position taken by the French Government [Page 99] the invitation to the Conference should be sent out by the United States Government in its own name and in the name of the Governments of the Soviet Union, Great Britain and China. The Soviet Government agrees to the invitations being sent out at noon on March 1 Washington time and to the simultaneous publication by the four Governments in the four capitals of the text of the invitation as submitted with my communication, with the proposed modifications. There is no objection on the Soviet side to our Government’s releasing to the press the explanatory statement mentioned in point 5 of my oommunication.
With respect to the statement which it was proposed that the Secretary should make in case the question of the inviting of Poland should be raised subsequent to the publication of the invitations, the Soviet Government considers that this question requires further consideration.
- Not printed; Mr. Harriman stated that he had seen the First Deputy People’s Commissar for Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union, Andrei Y. Vyshinksy, and covered all points in the Department’s recent telegrams regarding the invitation to the San Francisco meeting the French position thereto, and the proposed Polish release; Mr. Vyshinsky promised a reply the next day if possible (500.CC/2–2645).↩
- Not printed; it had reference to telegram 421, February 25, 4 p.m. See footnote 44, p. 84.↩