767.68119/11–745
The British Embassy to the Department of State 92
Extract of a Telegram received by the Foreign Office from His Majesty’s Representative at Angora dated November 5th, 1945
The Turkish Secretary General called on me this morning and spoke about the American note on the Straits presented on November 2nd.
M. Erkin said that he saw three difficulties in the American proposals:
- (a)
- There was no indication how the Black Sea powers were to decide whether or not warships of non-Black Sea powers were to enter the Black Sea,
- (b)
- the Turks may find the whole Soviet and possibly Satellite Navies in the territorial waters of Istanbul at one and the same time,
- (c)
- the effect of the American proposals would be to turn the Black Sea into a Russian naval base from which the Soviet Navy could make tip [hit?] and run expeditions into the Mediterranean without danger of pursuit.
I said that I thought his first point would also occur to London. There did not seem to me much in the other two points since it was no use hoping to satisfy the Russians with anything less than unrestricted egress and ingress. I added that I should have thought the new American proposals would be more acceptable to the Turks than earlier ideas of demilitarization and internationalization.
M. Erkin agreed. He went on to ask when Turkey might expect reaction of His Majesty’s Government. I said I had no information as to this but I did not think you would be in a hurry. M. Erkin seemed to accept this but on leaving me he visited the Counsellor to whom he emphasized that Turkey was most anxious to receive even unofficial views of His Majesty’s Government on the American [Page 1274] proposals which would help her should e.g. the Soviet Union invite Turkish comment upon these proposals.
- In telegram 1070, November 7, 8 p.m., to Ankara, the Department inquired whether the Ambassador in Turkey had been informed by his British colleague of the events described herein (767.68119/11–745), and the Ambassador responded in the negative in telegram 1434, November 9 (767.68119/11–945). Subsequently, in telegram 1442, November 10, 2 p.m., Ambassador Wilson apprised the Department that in conversation with the British Ambassador about another matter that morning Sir Maurice had informed him of the conversation with the Turkish Secretary-General; the British Ambassador had added that “subsequent to that conversation Erkin had asked his Counselor to obtain informally expression of Brit Govt’s views concerning [the United States] proposal” and that this request had been cabled to London (767.68119/11–1045).↩