740.00119 E.W./6–1145: Telegram
The Ambassador in the United Kingdom ( Winant ) to the Secretary of State
[Received 7:40 p.m.]
5898. Your 4239, May 28,70 and my 5631, June 4. We have now received a letter dated June 9 from the FO regarding implementation of article XVIII of Hungarian Armistice Agreement.
This letter states that the British are “certainly in agreement” with the State Dept in regarding the position of the American and Dept representative upon the commission as unsatisfactory. According to [Page 828] the letter, the Brit have been considering both this matter and the wider question of “our” future relations with the Balkan countries now under the armistice regimes, and they have come to the conclusion that negotiations for the improvement of the status of “our” representatives in these countries “might not offer the best prospect of attaining the objects which we have in common with the United States Govt”. The letter continues that the Brit have felt that the most satisfactory course might be to work for the early conclusion of peace treaties with the countries in question, and that the Embassy in Washington had already been instructed to put this suggestion before the State Dept. The letter states that the FO hopes shortly to know the State Depts views on Brit proposals and, if they are favorable, the Brit will then put them to the Soviet Govt.
In the concluding paragraph the letter says that if the Dept agrees to the British proposals and it appeared that the peace treaties could in fact be negotiated within a reasonably short period, it might not be necessary to embark on simultaneous negotiations for the improvement of the status of “our” representatives in Hungary.
Sir Orme Sargent, who signed the letter, in the final sentence added that he hoped that it would not be inconvenient if the FO awaited the view of the Dept upon the proposals made by the Brit in Washington before giving detailed considerations to those contained in the letter which transmitted the views of the Dept as contained in the latter’s telegram of May 28 under reference.
Sent to Dept as 5898 rptd to Moscow as 195.