800.515/8–2845: Telegram

The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Harriman)

1923. 1. As wartime measure US, the other American republics, UK and probably most other nations at war with Japan have immobilized those assets within their jurisdictions which were owned or controlled by Japanese or by any persons within Japanese occupied areas. In last few days US and UK have requested neutral countries to freeze and take a census of all public and private assets included in foregoing. This action has resulted in extension by neutrals to Japanese assets of all controls already established for German assets.40

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2. US will instruct Supreme Commander41 to require Japanese Govt to immobilize and take a census of (a) any property taken from Japanese occupied territory or from United Nations nationals by duress, wrongful acts of confiscation, looting, etc.; (b) all Japanese public and private foreign exchange and external assets of every kind and description, wherever the property or its owners may be located; (c) all assets located in Japan owned or controlled by persons in areas occupied by Japan at any time since 1894; (d) all assets public and private located in Japan and owned or controlled by Germany, Rumania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Finland or nationals thereof.

3. This program must now be implemented by similar controls in the areas liberated from Japanese domination. Accordingly, you are requested to inform the Govt to which you are accredited of foregoing and to invite it to instruct its field commanders and other authorities in liberated territories to issue or have issued freezing and census regulations immobilizing (a) Japanese owned or controlled assets located in zones under their supervision; (b) all assets owned or controlled by any person whatever residing within such liberated areas where the assets are located in Japan or in any other place outside of the particular liberated area from which they are owned or controlled; and (c) all German and German satellite public and private assets located within the area.

Liberated areas in this connection include Manchuria and Inner Mongolia, Korea, Formosa and Ryukyus, Karafuto, Hongkong, leased territory of Kwantung, Burma, Thailand, French Indo-China (Empire of Vietnam), Malay States, Dutch East Indies, Portuguese Timor, Sarawak, Brunei and North Borneo, Philippine Islands, Japanese Mandated Islands.

Repeated to Lisbon as 1409, Chungking as 1350, Paris as 4072 and The Hague as 122, and to London as 7384 for action and to Manila as 563 for information.

Byrnes
  1. See vol. ii, pp. 852 ff.
  2. General of the Army Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander, Allied Powers, Japan (SCAP).