800.504/1–3045
The Secretary of State to the Australian Minister ( Eggleston )
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note dated January 30, 1945, suggesting the holding of an international conference on employment at an early date. Notes of concurrence were submitted on the same date by the British Ambassador and the Minister of New Zealand.6 Careful consideration has been given to the proposal, and my Government would like to express the following views thereon:
The Government of the United States of America fully recognizes the urgency of the development by all nations of effective domestic programs for the attainment of high and stable levels of productive employment if the objective of freedom from want is to be realized. My Government further recognizes the desirability of international collaboration for the attainment of full employment and is in agreement with the view of the Australian Government that employment policy should be considered at an international conference.
My Government feels, however, that the employment problem is inextricably linked with problems of exchange and trade which have been under consideration by the several Governments for some time. While the maintenance of a sound and stable commercial and financial system may not be possible if serious unemployment exists in any major country, there can be no sound basis for the stability of productive employment at a high level in the various nations if there is not general international agreement to remove the excessive barriers and prevent the discriminatory practices which have restricted world trade in the past. Because of this close interrelationship between employment and trade, my Government is convinced that it is necessary to achieve a consistent definition of over-all objectives and unity of action in these fields.
It would be most unfortunate if full employment were sought in some countries by measures which would have the effect of reducing employment in other countries, as, for instance, by the encouragement of uneconomic production or by the erection of positive barriers to the free flow of international commerce. Only through the coordination of employment policy and trade policy will it be possible for each country to achieve the fullest and most economic use of its resources and the high levels of production and consumption which are essential if the general goal of freedom from want is to become a reality.
Therefore, my Government feels strongly that the desirability of proceeding as quickly as possible to promote international cooperation [Page 1334] with respect to both trade and employment policies calls for joint, rather than separate, treatment. Discussion of these matters among the several Governments is to be desired in conformance with their reciprocal undertakings under Article VII of the several Mutual Aid Agreements that have been negotiated.7
Accordingly, my Government would be pleased to participate at the earliest practicable date in an international conference on trade and employment. The conference would consider the entire problem of postwar international trade relations, including not only proposals for an international agreement for the reduction of trade barriers and the establishment of an international trade organization, but also the related problems of commodity agreement policy and cartel policy. The conference would also give full consideration to international aspects of the problem of maintaining high and stable levels of productive employment in all countries, and would explore the essential areas of international cooperation with a view to achieving agreement on methods, objectives, and procedures of coordinated action in this field.
It is the earnest hope of my Government that the Governments of Australia, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand will agree with this approach. If they do, my Government feels that steps should be taken promptly to hold the necessary preliminary discussions.
I am sending copies of this note to the British Ambassador and to the New Zealand Minister.
Accept [etc.]
[During the period from March to September 1945, discussions on the subject of expansion of world trade and employment were essentially bilateral between the United States and the United Kingdom, and constituted a direct outgrowth of the informal and exploratory discussions regarding postwar economic policy held in 1943 and 1944. Documentation on the Anglo-American discussions in 1945, as well as the records of three important meetings between the United States and Canadian officials on July 9, 14, and 15 are contained in volume VI.
For documentation on the previous informal and exploratory discussions, see Foreign Relations, 1943, volume I, pages 1099 ff. and ibid., 1944, volume II, pages 1 ff.
For President Roosevelt’s message to the Congress of March 26, 1945, recommending renewal of the Trade Agreements Act of 1934, [Page 1335] and for related statements by Secretary of State Stettinius, Acting Secretary Grew, Assistant Secretary Clayton, and by Charles P. Taft, see Department of State Bulletin, April–June, 1945, Index, entries under “Trade Agreements Act, renewal.”]
- Neither printed.↩
- The preliminary agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom regarding principles applying to mutual aid was signed at Washington February 23, 1942; for text, see Department of State Executive Agreement Series No. 241, or 56 Stat. (pt. 2) 1433. Article VII in the mutual aid agreements with other countries was similar to that in the agreement with the United Kingdom.↩