740.00119 P.W./8–1445
The Portuguese Embassy to the Department of State
The negotiations conducted by the Portuguese Government with the United States and United Kingdom Governments, looking to the organization of an expedition to expel the Japanese from Portuguese Timôr, have been overtaken by the impending surrender of Japan. The task of the Portuguese expeditionary force will thus, most probably, no longer be one of reconquest, but of mere occupation, without necessity of a training site or a point of concentration to start operations. In view of this, the Portuguese Government proposes to take the following measures:
Warships are to be sent to Timor with the minimum of delay: “Aviso” (sloop) of 1st. class, the Bartolomeu Dias, will leave Lourengo Marques without delay and a second “Aviso” of 1st class, the Alfonso de Albuquerque, will sail in about 10 or 12 days upon completion of repairs now being undergone in dock in the Union of South Africa. Two “Avisos” of 2nd class now at Lourengo Marques will follow shortly.
In view of the uncompleted arrangements with the United States and United Kingdom Governments for transportation facilities for the troops, it has been decided that these shall be shipped on two Portuguese merchant vessels. One, the Angola, is in Portuguese East Africa, and the other, the Sofala, is on her way there.
Whether the ships sail all together or separately will depend on whatever indications the Portuguese Government may then possess regarding the eventual reaction of the Japanese troops on Timor. If these, against all reasonable expectations, should be inclined to offer resistance, the Portuguese Government would then have to request American and British support in accordance with the framework [Page 453] of the terms already discussed for application in the event of Portuguese Timor’s having to be reconquered.