740.00119 E.W./5–1845: Telegram
The Chargé in the Soviet Union (Kerman) to the Secretary of State
[Received May 18—5 p.m.]
1649. At his request, I called on Maisky this afternoon.
Just prior to seeing him I received Dept’s 1090, May 17, 7 p.m. Maisky began by handing me a note which set forth once more the Soviet position on the composition of the Commission, proposing that [Page 1221] it undertake its work as a tripartite commission and leaving open the possibility of further discussion in the Commission itself of the question of composition. Substance of this communication is going forward by separate message.4 I told Maisky that we were prepared to begin the discussions on the tripartite basis and that I would give him a letter to this effect. I repeated the views stated in the second paragraph of the Depts telegram under reference.
Maisky then took up the question of the proposed visit and said that the Soviet Govt considered that a visit to Germany by the members of the Commission as a group would hardly be advantageous before the reparations discussions had begun. The Soviet Govt recognized the possibility, he said, that such a visit might be desirable at a later date when the framework of the Russian reparations agreement had been substantially completed by the members of the Commission, in accordance with the Crimea principles.
I told him that I thought that Mr. Pauley and Mr. Lubin would be making their own tour in any event, and gave him the information concerning the probable duration of the tour and their date of arrival in Moscow.
Sent to Dept as 1649; rptd to London as 209.
- Not printed.↩