890D.01/6–145
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Acting Secretary of State
| Participants: | Nikolai V. Novikov, Soviet Chargé d’Affaires |
| Mr. Grew, Acting Secretary of State | |
| Mr. Durbrow, Chief, Eastern European Division |
The Soviet Chargé called and left the attached note96 from the Soviet Government outlining its position with regard to the Syrian-Lebanese crisis.
I expressed to Mr. Novikov my gratification that his Government appeared to be in agreement with the attitude we have taken in regard to this question. He concurred and brought to my attention, as his personal opinion, the implication contained in the note that the Soviet Government perhaps desired to initiate consultations with the Big Five in order to settle the basic questions involved now that the cease-firing order had been issued by the French Government. Since the note does not ask directly for consultations, I made no comment on Mr. Novikov’s personal opinion as to what the Soviet Government might have in mind.
I assured Mr. Novikov that this message would receive our careful consideration and study, and told him that we had yesterday sent to his Government through Mr. Harriman copies of the notes we had sent on this subject.97
- Supra.↩
- Telegrams 1185, May 31, 1945, 7 p.m., and 1186, May 31, 1945, to Moscow, neither printed; the notes were those of May 28 to the French Provisional Government (see telegram 2331, May 26, noon, to Paris, p. 1104) and President Truman’s note of May 31 to General de Gaulle (see telegram 2428, May 31, noon, to Paris, p. 1121). In telegram 1863, June 2, 1945, noon, the Ambassador in the Soviet Union reported that the texts of the two notes and a summary of the situation in Syria and Lebanon were being communicated to the Soviet authorities “today”. (890D.01/6–245)↩