Foreign Relations of the United States, 1946, Eastern Europe, The Soviet Union, Volume VI

811.20200(D)/10–546: Telegram

The Ambassador in Yugoslavia (Patterson) to the Secretary of State

secret
us urgent

Belgrade, October 5, 1946—7 p.m.
[Received 9:30 p.m.]

1025. Deptel 657, October 2. When I handed Tito Department’s note on USIS today he would not reply before studying it but added reason for closing was not circulation Pridonoff articles only but “whole work of USIS” which was anti-Yugoslav Government and anti-Yugoslav people as well as against Yugoslav laws. If his Government were to allow it to reopen, they would request guarantees from US Embassy. US reading room, Tito said, had been subject constant complaints. It was not closed for any other reason, as proved by continuing operation of British, French and other reading rooms.

Marshal expressed regrets that small or big incidents between Embassy and Yugoslav authorities always got enormous publicity in US press in form of anti-Yugoslav campaign. He thought it more important to prevent incidents than to publicize them. He added that American papers usually do not give real reasons for incidents, giving American side only.

I said our press would publish anything he cared to write and added that what he said of our press was much more true of his own, as example I pointed out our press published Yugoslav notes on plane crashes whereas Yugoslav press published none of ours. Tito said “We have different methods of acting and working. After all, it is not possible to hide subject of American notes from the people. Everyone can listen to the radio.” Velebit said US notes were “not interesting enough” and Yugoslavs needed the space for more interesting items such as reconstruction. Tito promised early written reply USIS note.

During rest of conversation we

1. Protested Wedge sentence as excessive.⁹⁴

2. Reported imprisonment one of our Yugoslav employees, requesting information.

3. Requested return of $8,000 belonging to Embassy staff confiscated by Yugoslav police in black market raids last spring and Marshal agreed to return it.

4. Mentioned US commercial air service saying sorry to see Belgrade cut off routes of main airlines. Marshal replied he would study question and hoped have something for us on it soon.

5. Mentioned Tito’s charges against our staff, requesting further details, and briefly discussed Burnup case.⁹⁵ Velebit said Burnup’s case would probably be settled favorably soon. UNRRA saw him this morning.

6. Finally, Velebit said he couldn’t understand why America did not return Yugoslav Danube barges.⁹⁶

Sent Department 1025, repeated Paris for Secdel 128 and Moscow as 50.

Patterson

[On October 11, 1946, Acting Secretary of State Acheson made a public statement regarding the trial and conviction of Aloysius Stepinac, Archbishop of Zagreb, for alleged war crimes. For text, see Department of State Bulletin, October 20, 1946, page 725.]

94. Regarding the sentencing of Embassy guard Wedge, see footnote 21, p. 922.
95. Robert Burnup, an American road construction engineer working for UNRRA in Yugoslavia was arrested by the Yugoslav authorities at the end of September 1946 for alleged espionage activities.
96. Telegram 1024, October 5, from Belgrade, read in part as follows: “Aside from Trieste problem our failure to return Yugoslav barges has probably been the sharpest thorn in our Yugoslav relations for more than year. We have more than once acknowledged Yugoslav rights to the barges but continued to keep them. This has been subject of some bitter press comment in recent months.” (860H.85/10–546)