812.79600/12–1944
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Ambassador to Mexico (Messersmith), Temporarily in the United States
During a conversation with the President today I said to him that he would recall that when he and President Avila Camacho had had their visit in Monterrey and Corpus Christi,19 he had mentioned to Dr. Padilla, the Foreign Minister of Mexico, his own thought that Clipperton Island should be given to the Mexicans. The President said that he recalled his conversation with Dr. Padilla very well. He said that Clipperton now belonged to the French. He said that the British seemed to be very anxious to get hold of it. He said the French would probably not want to give it up. This was not the time to take the matter up with the French but it remained his opinion and his intention that Clipperton should return to Mexican sovereignty. He said that at the appropriate time he would take this up with the French.
The President said that in his opinion Clipperton should be under Mexican sovereignty. Of course, when it was returned to Mexican sovereignty, the appropriate arrangements should be made so that we and the British and others could use Clipperton as a base for commercial air operations. He knew Clipperton very well. He had been there several times. It had real importance in connection with certain air routes. It should be Mexican and he repeated that at the appropriate time he would take this up but that, of course, the Mexican [Page 784] Government would have to agree to certain privileges in connection with air navigation.
I told the President that the matter had been raised only most informally with me by the Mexican Foreign Minister and that I would be most reserved in what I would say to the Foreign Minister on this matter, confining myself at the most to saying that President Roosevelt had not forgotten this conversation.
- President Roosevelt visited President Avila Camacho in April 1943.↩