Office of the Historian

890E.01/2–245: Telegram

The Acting Secretary of State to the Minister to Syria and Lebanon (Wadsworth)

Washington, February 13, 1945—6 p.m.

33. We have been having discussions with British and Syrian situation has been receiving high level consideration. I regret we still have no definite word for you on action but desire meanwhile to give you our reaction to final sentence your 31, February 2, noon.

We were glad, in effort to be helpful, to advance suggestion that local Government’s objectives might be served by submission of acceptable treaty proposals simultaneously to France and major Allied powers. However, we are not prepared to put this suggestion forward as a formal proposal. In our view, the explosive potentialities of the situation reside in the relations of France and the Levant Governments and in the final analysis this is the problem which must be solved, whatever developments there may be as regards the relations of Syria and Lebanon with other Governments.

Grew

[For memorandum of February 14 of a conversation between President Roosevelt and King Ibn Saud dealing in part with Syria and Lebanon, see page 2.]