Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, 1945, The Near East and Africa, Volume VIII

890F.248/11–2845: Telegram

The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant) to the Secretary of State

London, November 28, 1945—1 p.m.
[Received November 28—11:33 a.m.]

12421. [For first two paragraphs of this telegram, see page 970.]

Howe’s⁴⁸ comment was that it was the strong wish of Foreign Office to cooperate with US in Saudi Arabia and Middle East in general to the fullest possible extent. No one in the Foreign Office questioned the benefits that would flow from such cooperation. He added that complaints had been made on various occasions by American officials against “British obstruction” in the Middle East. Recently, he continued, an official of the British Embassy asked an official of Dept. for specific instances of obstruction.⁴⁹ After some discussion⁵⁰ British Embassy representative was told that no specific instances of importance of this kind could be cited except in the field of aviation and telecommunications.⁵¹

British action in these fields that we objected to, Howe observed, no doubt came about because up to now London and Washington had not reached agreement on aviation and telecommunications essentials. He hoped, therefore, that in the interests of British and American cooperation in the Middle East, agreement in these fields would soon be reached.

Winant

[No civil air transport agreement was concluded in 1945 with any of the governments in the Near and Middle East.]

48. Robert George Howe, Assistant Under Secretary of State in the British Foreign Office.
49. See aide-mémoire of October 29, p. 75.
50. No record of this discussion found in Department files.
51. For documentation on discussions with the British regarding telecommunications problems, see pp. 1009 ff.