852.00/3–446
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Chief of the Division of Western European Affairs (Culbertson)
The Spanish Ambassador telephoned me at my home yesterday to say that he was under urgent instructions to deliver a note31 to the United States Government that day. He wanted to see the Secretary and I told him I doubted whether that would be possible. I arranged, therefore, to come in town to see the Ambassador. He first gave me the attached note in Spanish and what he called a free translation. I glanced through the translation but made no comment.
The Ambassador then went into some detail in discussing the situation in Spain, referring from time to time to some brief notes he had. Basically he is concerned about the possibility of Communist developments in Spain. He feels that if an interim group came into control they would have in Spain a situation almost identical with that existing in 1936, his point being that the Republican groups in control in 1936 were moderate, but as the Republic progressed the Communists obtained more and more control.
Cárdenas is convinced that if let alone Spain could and would work out her own destiny, but as a result of all this pressure that is being exerted, which he feels comes almost entirely from the Communists, there is strong probability that Spain will be thrown into revolution and eventually come into control of the Communists.
He also handed me other documents32 which I believe are merely the texts of statements issued in Madrid. Still another document was one issued by the Embassy entitled “Who was Cristino Garcia?”.