855.24/2–1445

The Department of State to the Belgian Embassy

Memorandum

The Department of State has considered the memorandum of January 23, 1945 received from Mr. Paul Kronacker, Minister of Imports of the Belgian Government, and the memorandum enclosed with the informal note of February 14, 1945 from the Belgian Ambassador.

(1)
The Department notes the indications in the memoranda under reference of improvement in the imports of civilian supplies into Belgium by the military since the first of the year. The Department is pleased to learn that a further increase in military civilian imports into Belgium has been accomplished at the instance of the Supreme Commander, Allied Expeditionary Forces, by the diversion of supplies from stockpiles existing overseas.
(2)
The Department notes the discussion in the memoranda under reference, of shipping tonnages allocated to the Belgian Government’s supplementary import program, more especially the request for additional tonnages in March 1945. The Department is glad to note that the shipping authorities have been able to make available for March and April, additional ships beyond those thought possible earlier in the year. The Department recognizes, however, that the problems of the Belgian Government do not end with the allocation of ships. There remain the problems of procurement, the preparation of requisitions, the placement of orders for supplies, and the movement of cargoes to seaboard at a time when transport facilities are overtaxed by the military for direct war purposes. No doubt the Belgian Government will expedite these steps to the utmost, in order that shipping presently assigned may be fully utilized. The Department urges that the representatives of the Belgian Government concerned with procurement, be authorized to take the maximum advantage [Page 95] of wartime supply availabilities including the acceptance of substitutes where more full specifications cannot be met.
(3)
The Department notes in the memorandum of January 23, 1945 the desire of the Belgian authorities that the military civilian import program be increased beyond the target of 2,000 calories daily. This is, of course, an eventual objective with which the Department is in full accord. However, military import programs for civilian use have been based upon estimates of total supplies at the disposition of the supplying countries after military operational requirements have been met and upon estimates of the over-all requirements of all of the claimant countries. When total supplies available permit an over-all increase, the Department expects that the military authorities will revise their estimates accordingly.
(4)
The shipping authorities have recently made tentative allocations for the second quarter of 1945 and it is unfortunate that the tonnages assigned are below the programs presented by the Belgian Government. This has, no doubt, been due to the general shortage of shipping available for national import programs after providing for direct military needs and the Department believes that the principle of equitable distribution among claimants is being strictly followed. It seems clear, however, that under these circumstances every effort should be made, in the selection and procurement of supplies, to achieve maximum efficiency in the utilization of the reduced tonnages available. To this end the Department and the other civilian agencies will cooperate fully with the Belgian authorities.