824.6354/7–1746

Memorandum of Conversation, by Mr. James Espy of the Division of North and West Coast Affairs

Participants: Ambassador Andrade of Bolivia
Mr. Braden—A–Br
Mr. James Espy—NWC

Ambassador Andrade of Bolivia called on Mr. Braden today and said that he had come again to take up the subject of negotiations. He said that the producers were adamant in their refusal to accept the price offered by RFC. They demanded that either RFC agree to pay them the base price of 66 cents, or that all restrictions be removed for the sale of tin to other parts of the world, specifically to Great Britain, France, Holland, or Belgium.

Ambassador Andrade went on to say that if no satisfactory arrangement could be made with RFC regarding the price of tin, he feared he would be compelled to address an official note to this Government requesting that it make a declaration that it would interpose, in no way, “inconvenientes” for the sale of Bolivian tin to other countries. Ambassador Andrade said that if through its influences the US obstructed the sale of tin to other buyers than its own, he believed the Bolivian Government would insist that the question be brought before the United Nations for consideration as a discriminatory practice to freedom of trade.

Ambassador Andrade concluded his remarks by saying that he had received instructions from his Government to do all possible for the continuance of the sale of Bolivian tin concentrates to the Texas City refinery, and that it was also his sincere hope that this could be done.

Mr. Braden told Ambassador Andrade that this matter would be looked into. He recalled that he had said at the general meeting which had been held this last spring that if no agreement could be reached between the Bolivians and ourselves on the price for the sale of the tin to RFC then he felt that the Bolivians should be left at complete liberty to sell their tin elsewhere.76

James Espy
  1. A postscript by James Espy reads as follows: “7/18/46 N.B. Mr. Donald Kennedy I.R. informed me that the International Tin Committee has allocated specific quotas of tin to each of the major purchasing countries (i.e. U.S., G.B., Holland, Belgium and France) and that therefore if Bolivia tried to sell its tin to one or another country that would exceed that country’s quota the country could not purchase the tin. J.E.”